Unbreakable
by Aozoran
Summary: When a death strikes at the heart of DG's world, many questions are left behind. The first one being... Is he really dead at all? What secrets have been left behind in his keeping by the Mystic Man? Pairings DGWC And AZG.
1. Chapter 1: What Fears Lie In The Dark

Disclaimer: Much to my regret I don't own it...

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**Chapter One: What Fears Lie In The Dark**

Royal Palace, Central City

A chilling shiver rippled its way down her spine, the slender woman stirring slightly as she tugged the heavy blankets more firmly around her, pulling them securely into place, yet the freezing touch of ice slipped down into the warmth of her bed lingering against her skin. Tired vivid blue eyes flickered open slightly, dark circles smudged across the wan skin, brows suddenly knitting in confusion over the icy brush. Burying herself deeper into the blankets in a futile attempt to warm herself, DG pressed her face into the pillow, a low sound echoing from her lips frustrated and lost. Black locks twisted and knotted around her pale features, while her eyes drifted closed for a moment.

_DG._ A whisper quiet voice echoed in the darkness, jolting her firmly back awake, sitting up instantly her exhausted features were distorted by the heavy mark of confusion. A sudden wave of chills scored their way across her skin, bringing goosebumps to the pale white flesh even though the night was positively balmy, hot days having hovered over Central City for weeks.

"Cain?" Her voice cracked dryly, forehead dropping against her hand as a swarm of shivers skittered up her spine, making her yelp helplessly against them. The blankets offering her trembling body against the strange almost magical chills. The young woman swore the voice had been the Tin Man's… yet that was impossible… had he not left weeks ago?

_DG?_ Again the husky tone, deep and resonate, but this time marked with a hint of… frustration… _DG…_ No… it wasn't frustration, for the first time, that voice held a note of apprehension. The freezing chill that had been seeping into her flesh melted down into her very bones, hands instantly clutching the sheets, certain that it was definitely the Tin Man speaking her name…

Yet, in the dimness of her room, the firelight revealed the emptiness of it, aside from furniture and a few scattered belongings it was empty and lifeless. "This isn't funny, Tin Man." She hissed softly, head turning around, eyes narrowing in the sheltering darkness, remembering the last words they had shared… hers angry and stubborn… his cold… cold and so very calm. "Where are you?"

No answer, only silence responded to her words, and the soft chattering of her own teeth. Was it her mind playing tricks on her? Dragging up his voice to torment her further? Was his leaving not enough to hurt her?

_DG! _

A sudden wave of terror gripped her heart, tearing it from her chest at the cry of her name, the voice strained and tinged with a terrible pain and fear… yes… a deep overwhelming fear that suddenly twisted its way into her heart as she sprang from the bed, blood pounding through her ready to fight or flee… "CAIN?" His name was called through the darkness, her bare feet skittering across the floor as she was chasing after the wisps of his presence, the cold that had come suddenly cocooned her in its harsh embrace, yet she resisted its heavy pull, her magic sending the doors of her room crashing open onto the main corridor.

_I'm sorry… _The guilty and regretful tone rippled through her already pounding heart, twisting it painfully tight to hear such words in that husky rough voice… one that was fading quickly as if it were being carried away swiftly by the wind. _…Forgive me…_

"Cain?" She breathed out, skidding to a bodily stop as she crashed against the far wall, her bare feet sliding on the smooth polished marble stone of the corridor just outside her bedroom. "Stop it… Tin Man… Why are you apologising?" The Princess cried out, hearing her own voice reverberate down the long corridor. "Cain! Answer me!"

…_So very sorry…_

A storm of pain roared through her, as if tearing her literally limb from limb, a shriek of terror scorching through her and making it out from her lips, but it was not her pain… it was his… the deafening thud of her pounding heart in her ears as she sprinted down the corridor, knocking over things as she crashed through the darkness, clawing her way after that voice that was fading faster than she could get to it… "CAIN!" Her body suddenly crashed full force through a decorative window, sending shards of rainbow hued glass spraying out in a cloud around her, the sharp pieces slashing at her and cutting deeply into her feet… Her momentum carried her the last few steps to the railing of the balcony and almost over the edge… yet she did not care.

The distant sounds of guards and waking people were drowned out as she suddenly crumpled as her eyes flared wide, the assault of images crashed through her like she had the window, piercing into her mind… So much blood, pools sprayed across snow, the white dyed a brilliant scarlet, a face flashing before her eyes, bruised and battered, Wyatt Cain stared straight at her… straight there her, his features twisted into a grimace…

"…Wyatt…" DG's hands clutched at thin air, attempting to stretch out and reach him, tears suddenly stinging her glass-slashed cheeks, grasping to reach out for the man. Before the sound of a single gunshot snapped through her like a bolt of lightning, searing into her flesh, her hand pressing against her chest, feeling the blow as if it were real… but it was not her…

For a moment his icy blue eyes turned upwards slightly and met hers, her name being whispered soundlessly from his lips before his entire body went limp, expression lifeless and unchanged as she stared at a scene of ice cold stone and mountains and the man sprawled in the snow before her, for all the world quite dead… those eyes staring into hers unblinkingly now. A blossom of red slowly seeped across his shirt from a single small hole in the centre, spreading like a disease across his chest marking the small wound of a bullet that had killed the man.

"No…" This was a dream… a hellish nightmare her body had suddenly stopped feeling so cold… the lifeless feeling replacing it… This could not be true. It was just a nightmare… "Wyatt?"

Yet, this time there truly was no answer. Her magic spun out around her, stretching to touch the strange invisible link that had bound them for only a few moments… and touched the last wisps of it before it faded from her grasp, escaping through her fingers like a ghost.

_"WYATT!"_ His name was a howling wail of pain and horror as she sank to her knees, her bruised skin being slashed by the piles of broken glass, yet it did not matter to her… her world came crashing down upon her, a wave of regrets and a deep felt guilt… Before the world seemed to spin madly around her, the hot warmth fluttering down over her skin, slowly pooling around her amongst the shards of glass was her own blood…

The faces of her family and the terrified expression of her friends greeted her as they suddenly found her, her lips mouthing the dead man's name over and over as tears streaked down her cheeks. Yet, somewhere in her heart… she couldn't believe it was true… he couldn't be dead… he couldn't leave her… alone… And the faces blurred harshly, just as the night swallowed her up in its powerful grip, sweeping her away into unconsciousness as she collapsed limply amongst the remains of the beautiful window torn asunder…

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Three Months Earlier

"You can't." Her voice was whisper soft as she stood in the doorway, watching as the Tin Man was packing up his things into a simple leather satchel, it didn't take him long… there was barely anything in these rooms that he had been given after the Eclipse. Her blue eyes stared hard into his back, wishing desperately in her heart…

"I can and I am, Princess." He replied steely, back stiff and straight like a board, giving rise to the impression of a policeman standing tall and steady on duty, the cool and calculating presence of a Tin Man. "I have my reasons and they are none of your concern." The last of the things suddenly finding their way into the bag that was slung up over one shoulder, his hat shielding his eyes and his expression remained so very cold…

That made that azure gaze narrow sharply on his back, before a small hand was reaching out to lightly touch his hand, moving forwards and staring upwards to try to catch a glimpse of his face. But his hand stayed at his side, avoiding any contact with her, taking a step towards the door moving around her as he did so, yet small fingers did catch it, gripping it tight to keep him in place. "What if I asked you not to go?"

"I got orders, Kid. I got duties just like you do." His husky voice hid within it all the emotions that lurked beneath the stiff shell that had returned only a few days before, the one that was identical to the personality that had emerged from the iron maiden… driven and aloof… detached from everything around him.

"Duties?" That gaze was firmly on his pale ice blue eyes, her grip tightening on his arm, holding him in place as she put herself between him and the door. "Duties? That I become some kind of puppet on strings for my Mother? That I become something I know I am not."

For the first time he looked down at her, his expression remaining stiff and unmoved by her words. Where there had been for a few blissful days a welcoming half smile… a hint of concern or happiness… now there was nothing left for her in his eyes. Nothing but a field of frozen ice and a lifelessness that sent a frozen chill right the way through her. "You belong here, Kid. I'm certain it only seems uncomfortable for now, you will be happy here. I know it, so I am finished look after you."

"Liar." She snapped sharply, his words stinging her as if he had slapped her in the face. Yet she didn't catch the pain that flared in those pale eyes for only an instant, before her hand shoved him slightly in the middle of his chest, forcing him backwards a step. "Liar."

"You are an inconvenience." The words were said so simply, so… _honestly_, it jolted her backwards and her hand fell from his arm, her fingers curling into a tight fist. He couldn't mean that… it was impossible… He would never say that to her. "I have duties to attend to and you are in my way. Excuse me Princess."

"Cain?" Her voice quivered for a moment, luminous eyes staring upwards at him disbelieve crossing her features as he watched him. Where had the man she knew gone? The man that had come to her rescue… had made her feel… needed in some small way.

"You cannot expect me to remain here, while people out there have need of my services, your mother has given me a mission, one that is an honour to have received." Again he was avoiding her question with the words of duty and discipline, a Tin Man to the core… where there was no heart at all. "Do I have your leave to be dismissed, Princess?"

"Cain… please…" Questioning, searching for anything to grasp onto, to find a way to make him stay… he couldn't leave… Raw… Glitch… Azkadelia too had been sent away… each having a new life… without her in it. Leaving her to her lessons, to the swarms of suitors and nobles that were all wishing to use her for their own ends… also leaving her to her mother's expectations and rules, and her father's inability to ever see passed his wife to the daughter that had tried to gain even a little attention… a little affection in a world of etiquette and frills where no one cared. She had tried… she had honestly tried to do what she felt was expected of her… but as each thing was stripped away from her. All the things that made her… DG of Kansas, the quirky and stubborn woman that had a knack for finding trouble were stripped away leaving the lonely and despairing young woman behind. "Don't go."

"Am I dismissed, your highness?" He questioned again, his eyes not meeting hers, remaining stiff and formal.

"Then go!" She hissed at him, tears prickling their way to her eyes, her glare turning venomous towards him, "Get out of my sight. Get out! GET OUT!" And the moment those words left her lips, her heart that was clinging to the fragile affection she held for him were torn into tiny pieces. And her fall slowly into that pit of absolute despair was paved by her own makings…

And without another word… he vanished out of her life…

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The first hints of consciousness hit her like a wave of bricks that were slowly crushing the life out of her, the sheer weight of them leaving her breathless and impossibly heavy. For long moments, her face twisted slightly in a grimace, each bone and sinew aching with a new spark of pain each time she shifted weakly. The darkness outside was hinting slowly towards dawn, the first fingers of light springing up across the sill of the window, but that was when she realised unlike other mornings she was far from being alone.

Whispered voices passed over her like a wet blanket, neither of the speakers even seeming to notice she was awake… the raw emotions of the nightmare stabbed through her soul, unlike the others that had plagued her, this one had felt so real… so believable that her heart twisted like a knife within her chest. Keeping her eyes closed, her mind was drifting struggling to bring the words into focus above her.

"… You are certain he's dead?" Came the soft voice of Lavender Eyes, the woman hovering in the dawning light, her vivid gaze turned towards the Royal Adviser that sat beside the bed, one hand lightly reaching out towards the cold one of the Princess, who kept herself deadly still at the light touch against her fingers.

"Yes." The word was squeezed out of Glitch as if rung from dry washing, "Yes… the news… came only moments ago." The hitch of pain in those words, the silent whisper of anguish marked each and every letter, for even though sometimes Glitch and the Tin Man had had their differences, they had become good friends in a way, and the news of the man's death had struck him hard. His pale hand clutched at DG's, clenching it so tight, his knuckles were a stark white against the dark sheets. "They found no body… but they were positive no one could have survived that… what was done…" A dry gasp for air, and a sharp tightening of the grip on her hand reflected the words that had been spoken by the resistance fighters that had arrived.

"I'm sorry to hear of this." The Queen's voice was still, calm… and so very collected, the woman retaining the regal bearing even though a man who had been one of the people that saved the Kingdom from destruction was now dead… somewhere lost amongst the mountains of that cold… cold… wasteland. "I will do all I can for his family… he was a loyal man. It is a regret to see such a life pass away."

Every word she spoke was like a hammer driving the nail deeper and deeper into DG's heart, even though Cain had left… even though months had passed… without a single word… hearing her speak so… so formally about Cain as if he were nothing more than another soldier that had lost his life sent her emotions spinning out onto thin ice. How could she say it so… so calmly?

"I'm afraid, this was all they found…" A third voice added, nervous and twittery, a soldier who had been one of those who had brought the news as he stepped through the doorway, his eyes flickering between the three people, depositing the item onto the edge of the bed, before he lost his nerve and retreated out the doorway.

"No." A sharp sound came from the usually infinitely cheerful Glitch, his voice unusually marked by the rough sound of unshed and hidden tears. "So… it is true… he is dead."

The faint scent of gunpowder filled her nose, the metallic tang of cleaned metal and cleaning grease assaulted her nose… She knew that scent… and the distinct hint of leather… Her eyes flared open, startling both occupants of the room, before she lunged for the battered and blood stained duster resting on the edge of the bed, the material dragging slightly with the weight of the gun tucked into its folds.

"No." Her brilliant blue eyes were wide and staring into Glitch's, the fabric suddenly being tugged sharply into her arms, her face burying against the time worn leather, one hand closing around the cold metal of the pistol, feeling a thin thread of hope weave its way through her. "He can't be!" Her arms tightened around the prized objects that had once belonged to the Tin Man, her blue eyes narrowed and a sudden jolt of magic sizzled through the air, forcefully shoving back both her friend and the person she was meant to call mother… "He is alive."

The once cheerful and quirky girl who had arrived in the O.Z as a strange traveller, who had battled a witch… survived countless dangers had been turned into a lonely, despairing soul that had lost so much as her parents had slowly stripped away everything of meaning from her life… in the name of doing what was right for her. They had driven him away… and he had followed their orders… leaving her behind leaving her alone in this place… This world that had held so much charm now cast another darker spell upon her, it had taken away the one thing she had clung to in the dark sleepless nights where only nightmare would keep her company. Cain.

"My Angel?" The Queen's wide lavender eyes stared down at what had become of her daughter, one marred by tiny scarred cuts, who's eyes made her take a physical step back. "Please… I know he was your… friend… But you must understand that he…"

"My friend?" DG snapped sharply cutting her mother off, those blue eyes staring at the woman, forgetting that there was another person in the room. "My _friend_?" The grip on the items was tightened, having seen that the queen was quite intent on removing them from the younger woman's possession. "What do you know about _my_ friends? What do you _know_ about anything?!"

"Enough!" The woman snapped, those bright violet eyes narrowing sharply at her younger daughter, enraged at being spoken too in such a manner. "What right do you have to speak to me in that manner, I am your mother."

"_My_ mother?" The haunting nightmare of the night was real… the long slashing scars that peppered her hands showed all too well… that it had been real. Was Cain really dead? He couldn't be… a part of her screamed it, no matter what she had seen… she knew he was out there… somewhere… hurting… "You are not my mother… I don't even know you. You treat me as if I am nothing… Nothing but a child... Someone that will take each of your instructions without question."

Suddenly the mirror in the bathroom shattered with a deafening crash, the magic coiling around her like a snake, spitting and hissing madly, rising alongside her anger, her anguish and pain… The tinkle of glass floating across the tiles, before another mirror followed close behind, spraying a wall of glass out into the room just behind the Queen.

"I give that you might be grieving right now, DG…"

A hand reached out to lightly touch her shoulder, snapping her around to stare into Glitch's startled and anguished features, his worry and deep concern marking deep lines along his pale face. "DG…"

"Shut up!" She screamed at both of them, pushing away the concerned hand of her friend, bolting from the bed, her legs almost giving out under her as the Queen took several steps after her as she fled into the bathroom, unable to stand there and take any more of their words… the door slamming hard behind her and the lock clicked hard into place. The woman slowly slide down the inside of the door, her entire body shuddering with heavy sobs thick tears sliding out from beneath her lashes, while she could hear her mother knocking on the door, the vibrations running down through the wood.

"Come out here now, young lady."

"Never." DG growled back, her face buried against the collar of the leather duster, the deep brown leather stained dark with the touches of blood, yet there was a faint scent still clinging to the material.

"Now." The Queen commanded, that tone used on the most stubborn of underlings, usually would make anyone instantly obey without question, yet had no affect on DG… "That is not a request."

"GO TO HELL!"

"Than stay in there, if you are going to act like a child. See what trouble it brings you."

Before she could hear the faint click of the woman's shoes making their way across the polished marble floor. However, there was a long pause of silence before there was a slight sound of scuffed boots slowly making their way to the door. Another long hush made her lift her head ever so slightly, knowing it was Glitch who hovered on the other side of the door, the braincase dropping down to his knees and resting a palm against the door as if trying to reach through it to find her.

"DG? Please… I…" Hesitation, the man's voice faltered obviously realising the true gravity of the situation that he had found himself in. "Please open the door."

"Go away." Came the whispered reply, one that Glitch struggled to make out as he leaned forwards against the door, trying the knob carefully but found after a few moments that it was firmly locked against him. "Just… leave me alone…"

"Please…" He murmured softly, both hands pressing against the door, dark brown eyes filled with a deep aching sadness, while long stringy strands of hair wafted down over his face, clinging to his clammy icy pale skin. "I only want to help… you know she didn't mean that DG… she's just…"

"Just what?" The sharp prickly defences flared upwards into place, her hand suddenly finding the hilt of the gun, fingers coiling around the cold metal, pressing it upwards against her chest protectively. Fingers touching the slightly dented and scratched mental with infinite care… Cain would never loose this… "What would you suggest she would do?"

"I…" The man suddenly realised that he didn't have an answer, and it was definitely not his brain's fault… he simply… didn't know…

"Go away." And soon she was left… in silence… A deafening quiet that swallowed her up completely within its grasp, leaving her to the agony of her own mind and twisted wreck of a heart.

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The door slowly creaked open, deep blue eyes peering out into the rooms beyond the bathroom, each and every part of it was scanned slowly, to make sure no one was there before she slipped through the gap, the long duster bundled around the gun held tightly to her chest. Her eyes flickered towards the main doorway, catching sight that there was no one outside she carefully moved across the room, dipping down onto her knees and carefully settling the items in the hidden compartment she had accidentally found in the heavy wardrobe of heavy lacquered wood, the small draw being pushed back into place, sealing the two items into the dark niche in the side of it. There was no way she would give it up… no to anyone…

When she stood there, eyes staring out the window at the distant mountains that hovered across the edge of the horizon and her fingers rubbed harshly at the long salty trails that stained across her reddened cheeks, the long hours of tears still not being enough to ever drive out the horror of the vision… the nightmare of those lifeless pale blue eyes… of Cain's voice whispering her name before his death.

They said he was dead… in her nightmare… he was dead… yet… yet there were questions that were not answered… Where was his body? And who… who had killed him… And why part of her refused to accept that he was truly gone.

And for the first time since he had left, since he had taken a part of her with him as he had walked out of the palace and out of her life… she felt a strange clarity. A sharp clear thought, one that she clung to with all the strength she had, she would not give up… not on him… Not until she saw his body, felt the lifelessness of it would she accept it. The stubborn and brilliant spark flashed for a moment in her eyes, she would not give up.

But first… she needed a plan… and information if she was ever going to find him… Her tears and shivers had stopped, the anguish she felt in her heart was bottled up tightly, pushed to the furthest darkest part of her mind, and steeling herself.

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OOC Okay people, its been a long time since I attempted my hand at Fan Fiction... but here we are. Hope you enjoyed it. Please Review. But trust me it will have a happy ending! Well it will if I get enough motivation to write reviewing helps would love comments on what you would like to see in the story! Also looking for a beta willing to put up with me .


	2. Chapter 2: Deception

Disclaimer: I don't own it, but would love too!

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**Chapter Two: Deception**

Royal Palace, Central City

The guards stood around the doorway, their faces hidden beneath the heavy helmets, the long spears resting at their sides, almost like the classic example of Castle guards from one of those old Robin Hood movies, however a small part of her wondered… if the stupidity of the usually nameless characters carried over. If her luck held then they would be. The wide wooden doors to her mother's study lay between the two men, the burnished wood shining a soft mahogany in the torchlight, the deep hours of the night being effective enough at hiding her presence and limiting the number of guards around the palace.

Every question she had asked had been met with evasive words, every hope for information had been dashed with the words 'it is a private matter, Princess'… or something of the like, and she knew very well who it was that had ordered the complete silence of the guards. Her Mother, leave it to the woman to think it was for the good of her child to make sure she knew nothing more about where or why… Cain had supposedly died. She could not live with that…

Blue eyes narrowed as she slipped closer along the bottom edge of the wall, her dark head peeking out from around the corner, catching a better look at the two men, seeing one slowly drifting into a doze, his body leaning heavily on the spear, yet the other jabbed him hard with the base of the long shaft hard into the side, the sleepy Soldier jerking awake his face turning towards his companion with something akin to annoyance.

"Stay awake." The jabber hissed below his breath, standing straight at attention, the spear resting at his side as he shot a short glare at his companion. "What if..."

And he was abruptly cut off as the sleepier of the two gave him a deeply annoyed look. "What if… what if what? Someone sneaks in?" The Guard muttered tiredly, his spear shifting to his other hand; he was twisting around to lean against the wall, head drooping ever so slightly against the frame. "Who would be stupid enough to try to get into the Queen's study?"

"You are stupid enough for the pair of us." His companion muttered, a gruff snort equalling enough to a reply.

The stupid one apparently was DG, not that she cared, one of the answers had to be within that study… Sinking to her knees, she was twisting slightly so that she could glance quickly down the corridor, catching sight of something further down near the next intersection of corridors. The edges of the torch hovering just out of reach of the fine gauze curtains, and a small smile curved the edge of her lips, with a very small push, the curtains whipped around as if thrown in a strong wind, the fabric passing through the flame and instantly flared into life. Flares of light flickered down the edge of the curtain, racing along the light sheets of pale white cloth before thick wisps of smoke were curling upwards from it.

The stench of sizzling fabric did not take long to reach the guards, the two men suddenly sniffing the air and jolting as they turned sharply to see the slowly spreading blaze only a couple of dozen feet from them. Instantly both were sprinting towards the flames, their voices raising an alert in the darkness of the night, their backs were to her hiding place before she skittered quickly across the hall, her body pressing flat against the wide intricately carved doors.

Her fingers pressed against the lock, her eyes closing tightly as she was trying to reach out with her magic, trying to visualise the inside of the lock mechanism like she had the bolts of the coffin in the mausoleum, slowly the tumblers began to click into place. Her gaze darted to the guards, fearful that they would catch her exposed like that, but suddenly the door slipped inwards under her weight sending her sprawling into the dark room, her feet instantly pushing back against the door hearing the lock click firmly into place.

Whispering a soft apology under her breath in the direction of the two guards and the others rushing to hurriedly put out the fire, her eyes turned towards the vast room decorated in the strange spindly fashion that dominated the palace, making her feel like if she dared to touch it, it would fall to pieces. But her attention drifted from the sharp sounds and calls outside, to the row of long bookshelves resting along the walls of the main greeting area that left a small door in one corner, her mother's private study. Even she had never been through that doorway, but she knew what she sort was definitely on the other side, the first clue on her road to finding the Tin Man.

Slipping across the cool dark room, the long shadows seemed to close slowly in around her as she reached the door, her hand reaching out to press against the knob only to find her hand jolted away sharply by a small spell that rippled under her fingertips. Eyes narrowing, her hand pushed further up against the slender equally spindly handle and shoved hard at it, a sharp crack of magic whipped around her hands, lighting the room in a blossom of powerful magic that snapped the spell and the door twisted open to allow her in.

Fingers stinging sharply from the backlash of the broken seal, she refused to acknowledge the pain, her blue eyes flickering through the darkness, her hands slowly producing a gentle trickle of light, illuminating the place around her and casting long silhouettes across the white plaster walls. There in the centre of the room backed by high arching windows lay the desk, the neatness and order of it demonstrating the nature of the woman that owned it… meticulous and you could literally eat off any surface in the room.

Eyes locked on the desk, could it be this simple? She hoped desperately that it was, slowly rounding the desk to the bank of draws resting on one side of it, scrolls of paper neatly coiled in one slot between two of the most heavily decorated desk draws. Her hand reached out, hesitating that maybe there was another spell placed upon them, before she found they hadn't, dropping to her knees, her eyes squinted in the deepening gloom, trying to make out each of the tags wrapped around them before she located just the one she was looking for.

Pulling it from its place amongst the other rolls, her fingers carefully tugged at the binding ribbon and unrolled the parchment, the soft smell of ink tickling her nose as her fingers smoothed out the crinkles, the soft glow of her hands lighting up the small marks scrawled out over the large map of the Outer Zone. Running her fingers slowly over each mark, she finally found the one she was looking for, the simple initials WC. The date marked out on the tag indicating that his last recorded position of a few days before… another darker red splotch indicating the place where the remains of his things had been found…

Her knowledge of the kingdom was heavily lacking, even with the lessons that had been drilled into her, the limits to her movements had been set at the boundaries of the city… they did not want her being accidentally hurt… they couldn't have that could they? Her the future heir…

But this was the first clue… yet, she needed more… needed to know more or she would not be able to find him once she reached this place… Steeling herself, DG turned her attention back to the desk, the scroll being turn from its bindings and folded hurriedly and hidden inside her jacket, making sure it would not be lost.

Hands closing around one of the draws, the wood creaking under her white knuckled grip as she yanked it hard in an attempt to open it, yet a lock caught instantly the moment she tried, the desk giving a small shudder under the strain as she put her entire weight into dragging it out. Yet, it would budge no further… DG was certain her mother would keep anything regarding those she called friends under careful lock and key.

The soft echoes of her name… a glimmer of his face bruised and bloody flared into her mind, urging her on desperately as her hands pressed palms down against the wood and shoved hard with her magic. A thunderous low crack rippled through the desk, the fine dark timber splintering sharply in two, the lock suddenly clattering to the ground before her still impaled without its wooden surrounds. For a long moment she paused, ears straining to listen to anything that moved in the outer room… uncertain if the sound of what she had done had carried…

After a few long moments of silence, she tugged the draw free and upending it, sending waves of papers scattering across the floor in a wave of soft pale browns and start white, her eyes scanning each sheet as she swept through them, searching until she found the single page that held his name… The orders that had been written out in clear black and white… folding it and slipping it under the worn jacket, she lunged upwards, the voices outside growing louder and closer as the distinct hint of smoke slipped into the room.

Though she whispered a soft apology to the guards and people fighting the fire that had spread a little along the corridor, it gave her the necessary distraction to allow her to possibly make her escape. There was no time… no time to do anything else… for each hour she waited the further away the hope fled from her grasp.

A gritted determination flared within her heart, her hand closing around the doorknob leaving behind the chaos of her entry and search, not even caring at all over the mess, she edged the door open, brilliant blue eyes scanning the corridor outside… A swath of thick black smoke billowed suddenly around her, stinging throat as she covered her mouth with a thick woollen sleeve, her eyes burning as ashes fluttered passed… Yet, in the thick haze all she could make out were the frames of bulky guards and others throwing water and trying to douse the growing inferno with magic, trying to smoother it out… though it was quite contained within the corridor and her heart sank a little at the damage she was doing… but knew it was for good reason.

The door creaked open carefully before she flung herself across the gap, her booted feet sliding on the polished surface and into the neighbouring corridor, her head ducked down as she rushed down the connecting passages, passing people that had been woken for the second night in a row to the sounds of shouting… Slipping into her room, she locked the door behind her, her focus on gathering up the things that she needed… a small knife rested on the edge of the vanity as she stared into her eyes in the mirror.

That would not do… she could not allow herself to be recognised… they would stop her. She would escape this place and find the one person that held a meaning for her… the one that had called to her… twisting her hair in one hand, the blade slipped upwards, the razor slipping through the dark strands and severing them close to her head. Dark raven locks fluttered to the floor in a long wave, leaving her with only short curls that were clinging close to her head. The blade flipped shut, when she shoved it into her pocket, darting back out the bathroom door and over the ruins of what had once been beautiful long hair, the blood stained jacket had been cleaned carefully with a small spell earlier, the long leather duster being swept up and around her shoulders, almost far too long for her, the long sleeves hiding her hands as she rolled them up.

The gun sat on the bed sheets, the soft glimmer of metal catching the candlelight before her hand snatched up the heavy pistol, feeling the strangely reassuring weight in both hands before carefully tucking it into the waistband of her baggy pants. The edges of the collar flipped up as she buttoned it tightly around her, feeling the lingering scent of the man still on it…

Even if he was not here with her… he was still protecting her from the world.

* * *

In the chaos that had ensued after the fire, people were crowding in the corridors on the upper levels, the Queen and her consort also had been woken and their attention brought to the fire… but no one had yet discovered the depth of the true 'crime'. Her head ducked down, she slipped through the vast castle, moving slowly through its halls, ducking an weaving her way and keeping herself as small and unobtrusive as she could. Slipping out one of the side doors, she bolted across the courtyard, her head lifting upwards to catch sight of the smoke billowing upwards from the second floor windows, the dance of amber flames and crimson sparks illuminating the night like a vivid torch, deepening the shadows… but also making her more obvious to observers.

Her vivid blue eyes lifted suddenly as she spotted a figure standing on one of the lower balconies having just come from within one of the outer buildings, the messy hair hanging in dreadlocks around his pale skin that reflected the blossoming light above. And instantly she knew who it was, Glitch… he had avoided her… had remained so far away even though he was in the same place as her… seeing him this morning had been the first time she had in weeks, other than simple glimpse of him deep in conversation with her parents.

And suddenly those dark brown eyes were turning, looking through the darkness and spotting her shadow as she attempted to dive for cover underneath the heavier gloom cast by one of the large ornamental trees that littered the paved area in a complex matter that even she could not see clearly. But he had caught the movement and shifted towards the courtyard from the upper level gardens, his lips curving into a tight line as he was decreasing the distance.

DG could not simply stop now! Burying her face in the edge of the duster, she sprinted across open ground, her footsteps echoing across the stone, her eyes averted and not daring to look at the man. Her focus being on reaching the stables before anyone else worked out her plan.

"Hey… wait!" The strange lilted voice was raised into a call, echoing towards her, the man's shoes thumping rhythmically down the stairs and around the fountain as he approached. "Stop!"

Keeping her head down, she reached the entrance to the stables, the lanterns cast a warm glow over the bodies of the different horses within their stalls, twisting she searched for one… any one of the huge beasts that might be able to carry her… and there in the back was a bridled stallion, the saddle still firmly in place and ready to ride… Rushing towards it, the creature gave a sharp whiny, tugging hard against the reins that were looped around a crossbeam supporting one of the wooden walls. Rearing slightly, DG backed up a step, her heart racing within her chest as she twisted, finding no other close enough… and hearing the arrival of Glitch in the doorway… for once couldn't the man forget what he was doing?

Finally the horse dipped downwards, and she managed to wrap her hands around the reins, tugging hard and freeing them from around the post, gripping them tightly as she swung up awkwardly into the saddle, her fingers having a death grip on the saddle horn, begging the startled creature not to throw her.

"Stop in the name of the Queen." Glitch stood firmly in the doorway, placing himself clearly between them and the only exit out. His brown eyes searched for a look at the face, though the slight twitch of his features, "Stop in the name… name… name of the Queen." The words repeated sharply, the repetition remarkably stronger and demonstrating that he was not about to stand aside…

"No." DG hissed out low, the country bumpkin turned into a driven woman, one that had lost far too much in the last weeks that she cared to admit to herself. Her head lifted from underneath the brim of the hat, she had snatched from a hook on the wall, the fedora almost slipping down too far over her features, but blue eyes peaked out from underneath the edge.

"Stop. Or this will…"

"GET OUT OF MY WAY." The voice was slightly gravely with the burn of tears, the rough wrench of her heart at having to do this to her friend… of having to betray his trust in her… but she could not simply stay here… Cain was out there… "Get out of my way, Braincase."

And Glitch's eyes widen slightly as he recognised the voice and face beneath the hat, saw her hands shaking as she gripped the saddle with an inexperienced grasp, barely being able to stay on the horse as it was. "Doll?"

"Move Glitch!" The horse was being kicked forwards, the large creature bucking against her hands, shaking its head, yet it moved towards the Braincase, skittish its eyes wide and the whites showing in a ring around them. The scent of smoke adding to the creature's distress at having such a rider…

"DG? What are you doing…?" His eyes flickered backwards towards the palace and the fire raging, that was finally being brought under control. "Was that… you?" Disbelieve and confusion flooded his visage, the DG he knew would have never done such a thing…

"Get out of the way, or I can't be held responsible." The threat hovered in the air, her boots kicking the stallion hard, getting a few metres closer to the man who was watching her with such an expression that it tore into her heart. The burn of tears grew worse, but she pushed them back sharply… she had to get out of here…

"DG. Stop." His hand raised upwards towards the skittish horse's reins when a magical wave struck him midchest, flicking him several feet backwards and out onto the cold stone, he slid with the momentum of the blow on his back, crashing into the side of a heavy pot that wobbled and toppled over backwards with a harsh crash that alerted even more guards that had been rushing from the nearby barracks. Shouts and pointed fingers jabbed in her direction.

The distant sounds of pursuit washed over her, the roar of the distant fire and the raging beat of her own heart. Her voice a mere whisper in the wind as she begged whatever god or… crazy deity that had created this world that wherever Cain was… he would hold on a little longer.

* * *

Central City Streets

Perched on the edge of the high walls, the horse had bolted the moment she had released it, unable to keep riding the reckless creature, which was quite unlike riding a motorcycle, since one had a personality of its own and could decide that it clearly didn't like you… her hands curled into the crevices in between the bricks, slowly sliding down the outside before she suddenly dropped like a stone as her fingers slipped out and she landed hard on her rear, a sharp yelp escaping her as she twisted to gaze into the alleyway around her.

Perched on the edge of the high walls, the horse had bolted the moment she had released it, unable to keep riding the reckless creature, which was quite unlike riding a motorcycle, since one had a personality of its own and could decide that it clearly didn't like you… her hands curled into the crevices in between the bricks, slowly sliding down the outside before she suddenly dropped like a stone as her fingers slipped out and she landed hard on her rear, a sharp yelp escaping her as she twisted to gaze into the alleyway around her.

The only thing that moved in the shadows were the dark form of rats, their tiny bodies blending in with the piles of trash and garbage that littered the edges of the brick buildings. Shivering ever so slightly, the duster was pulled tightly around her, the deep brown material brushing against her cheek softly, soothing away a little of the fear that rippled through her.

The trickle of voices from the other side of the wall jolted her back to the present, her head bent low she was quickly on her feet, moving between the buildings, keeping to the deepest of shadows as her fingers dipped inside the pocket of her thick jacket beneath the duster, withdrawing the smaller folded square of paper that was badly bent at one edge, before she flipped it open. The words blurring slightly in the darkness and through the tears that clung to her dark lashes…

Before she rubbed harshly at them with the overly long cuff, leaving damp blotches behind before she tipped the message up to the faint light falling through the buildings, the words were vague, alluding only to a mission to find something… and it was clear now as she stared at the written record of the Tin Man's orders… that they had been a ploy merely to send him away on a wild chase through the O.Z. with something to do with something the Mystic Man left behind, yet… Cain would have known this… and he had left her… for this reason?

Fingers clenching, she almost crushed the paper in her small hands, before she shook herself hard, refolding the sheet and tucking it safely back into her pocket. Her mind was racing wildly, flickering through all the different things she could think of… knowing the one place she might find the first answers… was the first place he had stopped… The map was slipped out and her fingers traced the line from Central City heading westwards through the fields of the Papay and back towards the place she knew… could be none other than where Cain home had once been…

But the first question was… how was she going to get to the Realms with no transport? Before the soft rumble of an engine sputtering and whining in protest sounded in the darkness, wide beams of flashing light flared slowly to the side, blinding her for a brief moment before she was stepping forwards just around the edge of the building.

The low flat bedded truck pulled into the side of the road beside a wide storefront, the driver stepping down from the cab and glancing back and forth forcing her to press hard against the brick wall behind her, staying as still as possible before the man limped on, knocking heavily on the wooden door and waking the store owner inside.

Rough voices sounded inside as the driver halted out several heavy crates of fruit, the almost sickly sweet scent of them touching her nose… Fruit? Papay fruit… and she was suddenly flashing out from the alleyway just as the man's back was turned, slipping upwards into the back of the truck, her body being engulfed by the thick straw mattered at the back, squeezing between the empty crates of wood, and the cabin of the truck, its engine thrumming beneath her… Burying herself firmly in place, her face was pushed into the crook of one arm, keeping the straw out of her face. If this was the only way she was going to be able to hitch a ride… she was not going to complain.

Suddenly the burly driver returned from the delivery, the wooden crates he had been carrying suddenly slammed against the metal cab just above her head before it came crashing down over her, knocking the wind from her lungs yet she bit her tongue to prevent a sound from escaping he rand giving her away. Soon the sound of the rusty metal door clanged shut, the motor throbbing slowly beneath her, groaning and trembling under the effort of just moving the vehicle.

Her eyes fell closed, the sudden wave of terrible exhaustion fell across her, washing out her entire body as she struggled against the heavy weight crushing down above her, but remained as still as possible. The vehicle slowly rumbled down the streets and towards the western gates, DG hoped that they had not closed off the gates yet… if anything just a few more minutes and she would be outside…

* * *

OOC: An apology for those who find DG highly out of character. But to make this story work :) I took a little liberty. Hope you enjoy it! Please review! The more reviews the faster I put another up your words of encouragement inspire me.


	3. Chapter 3: In Unlikely Places

Disclaimer: Don't own anything, but Aster

* * *

**Chapter Three: In Unlikely Places**

Central City Streets

The truck rumbled slowly down the paved streets, the potholes bouncing the entire vehicle showing that the suspension was definitely not what it should be squeaking sharply with each jolt, and sending a spark of dread through her at the prospect of the entire journey being one entire rollercoaster ride. Her backpack was pulled slowly closer, tucking in it close against her chest, while DG slowly rolled onto her side, her back pressed up against the cab in an attempt to at least prevent her rolling around underneath the wooden crates.

Suddenly they came to a jerky halt, the foul-mouthed driver grumbling under his breath about the lateness of deliveries, the sharp halt sending her thudding up against the back of the cab, knocking the wind out of her lungs with a heavy whoosh. Heavy feet were coming around the back of the flat bed and several of the boxes were dragged away from her, the wood scrapping against metal as he carried them away from the back of the truck, another loud announcement of his presence and a long pause as the footsteps moved away from the vehicle down the back alley as she squinted through the side slats her blue eyes peering through the darkness.

And suddenly a heavy load was slipped forwards through the darkness onto the back just by her feet, forcing her to squeeze herself up or get completely crushed by the metallic trunk that had been dumped up onto the load bed… before she had a chance to wonder exactly what was going on, something terribly foul landed over her straw hideaway… shovel fulls of manure and vegetable wastes were being flung over both her and the box… It seemed she wasn't the only one wanting to hide something…

For long minutes, the scrap of the shovel and dull thump of the disgusting wastes were the only thing she heard, and her face buried against her hand inwardly groaning, not only have she chosen a vehicle that was going to make her feel like she couldn't eat for a week with its rolling jolting gate… but she was completely buried under a pile of stuff that smelled worse than the pigs that were kept on the farm, the stench nearly unbearable. Something cold and soggy slithered down through the hay, smearing across her face before she could shift away. The damp mouldy stench made her gasp for breath as she pushed as far towards the edge of the flatbed as she could, pressing her shoulder against the wooden slats, but remaining still in the darkness and hoping that the slight movement wouldn't gain the drivers attention.

But soon enough the cab door snapped shut once more, the driver protesting with yet another string of sharp curses about the rather cramped conditions within the cabin, before the engine rumbled to life and continued on its journey out of the city… with a new cargo to be dumped and contraband to move.

Suddenly she was being jolted hard yet again, though this time a shiver rippled down her spine at the muffled sound of guns clicking upwards and pointed down at the vehicle. Apparently they had realized the person who had set the fire had escaped… and that someone had been the Princess… The chair screeched painfully beneath the driver's burly weight that had shifted as he leaned an arm against the window frame, staring down the soldier that had come slowly towards his door. A bland look crossed the driver's face as the sheer power of the hideous odour of the cargo was slowly spiraling upwards, making at least one person gag instinctively.

"Vehicle inspection." The Guard barked out, reaching out for the handle to the door, when the scratched and dinked metal thumped into the uniformed chest, knocking the man back a slight step, before heavy boots stepped down onto the street,

"What do you mean, 'Vehicle inspection'?" The deep gravely voice of the driver was tinged with annoyance. A calloused thumb jabbed hard into the same slightly bruised chest of the Guard, jerking the smaller man backwards. "I have done nothing." The short aggravated reply came, but it was clear the man had a very low opinion of the guards, his eyes scouring each and every face with a look of irritation. His hand waved sharply towards the locked gates before the bonnet of the rundown truck, before glancing slightly towards the other guards that where hovering nearby behind his vehicle.

"You wish to search?" The man suddenly gave a bark of laughter, the annoyance suddenly giving way to bemusement, when the driver lifted his gaze to the soldiers standing on the level above them with guns cocked down at them, one or two having actually stepped back away from the battlements and covered their faces with sleeves or turned a particularly interesting shade of green. "Be my guest." An arm sweeping welcomingly towards the flatbed, much to DG's sudden horror…

One of the other guards suddenly stepped towards the one that seemed intent on doing just until he truly saw the mass of stinking rank manure and vegetable peelings, half of it semi-fermented and giving off… the worst possible stench imaginable. And the guards were suddenly quite unwilling to 'inspect' what might be amongst the horror that was the cargo.

"Very well… move along." The first soldier gasped out, a hand suddenly covering his nose and jerking a hand upwards for the gates to be opened, the heavy metal doors rumbling open and leaving the way clear out into the darkness of the night.

"You certain you not wish to check?" The giant of a man leaned forward, gazing down into the man's paling features, giving that same beaming grin.

"Move along!" The guard paled further as some of the slop slide down the pile and almost seem to give a lifelike twitch, sending a shiver down the man's spine and making him instantly step back and look anywhere but at the flat bed.

The driver returned to the cab this time, quite unbothered by the terrible stench, the metal door slamming closed as the vehicle rumbled back to life. The dark olive skinned man leaned out the window giving a small cheery wave before rolling out into the night and down along the old road, the tires kicking up dust as it went. The great gates almost slamming shut behind them, making DG let out a soft sigh of relief, suddenly grateful to be covered in something that smelt like… she didn't want to know…

From within the cabin, the driver was suddenly howling with laughter, unable to suppress the sounds of amusement and his delight at the true horror on the faces of the guards, there was something to be said for being a 'garbage man'.

Even though the air was barely breathable where she was trapped up against the slats, the slow rocking bounce of the flatbed was lulling her as the adrenaline high she had been on for the last hour dipped dangerously, and with it sapping all her ability to move or even think… Her grip on consciousness slowly slipping, as the journey away from the confines of the city slipped further and further behind… Head dipping against the smooth wood, her eyes flickered closed as everything seemed to catch up with her all at once and the night dragged her down into the darkness of a sleep.

* * *

Royal Palace, Central City

The Queen stood in the doorway to her office, her lavender eyes gazing around at the utter chaos that had once been a picture of perfection, her lips pressing into a straight line, her shoes clicking against the smooth marble of the floor as she was slowly approaching the desk, a hand reaching out to touch the flat wood surface, when there was an audible crack, the entire piece of furniture splitting in half along the top panel. Crashing to the floor in splintered pieces of wood, the soft whoosh of air sent the scattered pages sailing high into the air around her.

The tingle of her daughter's magic lingered in the air and on the ruins of what had once been a finely carved desk of mahogany wood. Several pages fluttered down around her, one bouncing lightly off the edges of her dress as she surveyed the true damage, the torn map… and missing page she could not spot amongst the rest. And the chilling note of what had been stolen slithered through the back of her mind…

Suddenly a bruised Glitch appeared in the doorway, his clothing streaked with soot and dust, hair utterly dishevelled from where his fingers were running back and forth through the strands, his body twitching every so often as a stray nerve pulsed awkwardly from the blast he had taken earlier. "Your Majesty…" He breathed out, bowing swiftly and almost toppling, his eyes suddenly comprehending the scene for a moment, all the neurons of what was left in his brain firing at once in one clean thought. "She stole something?" Before the mind that had been processing that particular thought line fizzled out and he stood there with a slightly blank look on his face.

"She did." The Queen turned around to gaze into the man's dark brown eyes, feeling a spark of sadness at seeing the usually quite brilliant man reduced to this state… yet the plans to replace Ambrose's brain back into his body had been held off for the time being at Glitch's request… "Tell me, Ambrose did they find my Daughter?"

"She…" His body twitched ever so slightly, eyes blinking after a moment. "She… she…she…"

A light bump of a hand against the back of the man's head threw him out of the mental rut, Ahamo appearing in the doorway behind the Glitch, the Slipper's eyes marked by a deep rooted concern, but also a very brilliant note of anger as he observed the destruction that lay about his Wife's feet and behind her.

"She escaped into the City." Glitch finally finished, turning around to look at Ahamo with a sparky little smile, before looking between the two.

"DG took the map… and the Tin Man's orders." A hand swept towards the destruction, anger flaring more into her face, colouring her expression, her heart sorely disappointed in her daughter for doing such things just for a simple Tin Man.

"The gates out of the city have been sealed." Ahamo added softly, moving over to wrap an arm gently around her wife's slender shoulders, "Do not worry yourself… she could not get too far on her own." He gave her a gentle squeeze of reassurance, his free hand lightly stroking against her arm, hoping to be able to offer the woman some small measure of comfort.

Suddenly a guard came flying through the doors in on the small party of people, his face reddened by the rush up the stairs and through the crowds milling around in the corridor outside, examining the damage that had been left behind by the fire that had swept along the length of the hallway leaving charred ruins in its wake. "Highness…"

"What is it?" She snapped sharply, her lavender eyes staring at the poor guard that looked almost like he would wilt under the gaze that was pinning him to the spot.

"Another two have gone missing…"

The issue to which she had assigned the Tin Man had steadily grown as messages had been coming back from all over the O.Z. as men who had served in the guard or around the Mystic Man were slowly vanishing without a trace. Though she had not paid much attention to it before, yet now with the death of the Tin Man and her own missing daughter, she was not at all pleased that the issue had not been solved. Because it was quite possible if DG followed in the footsteps of one Wyatt Cain, that she might end up in the grasp of whatever it was making the others vanish and leaving a man dead… and possibly could bring her daughter to a terrible end…

"Find her!" The Queen snapped, her lavender eyes closing as she pulled away from the comforting touch of her husband, her anger and disappointment rippling through her over the matter. "Find her at any cost." Her eyes turned towards Glitch, though the man wasn't exactly the most brilliant without the other half of his brain, he still had a genuine understanding of her daughter and that would give him possibly an edge in catching up with her. "Ambrose bring her home."

"Yes, your Majesty at once." He bowed deeply, his body being propelled out the door instantly with the orders given, the guard following behind realising he had been dismissed as well as Ambrose.

* * *

Along The Old Road Outside Of Central City

A yelp of pain escaped her lips as she was jolted sharply awake as she tumbled to the stony ground in a tumble of limbs, straw and scraps, her blue eyes staring upwards into the face of the Driver, realising that she had been discovered and cursing herself for never quite being able to match the natural 'I-can-hide-anywhere-without-being-caught' that the Tin Man could always produce no matter the circumstances. Her abused rear sent a protest through her… first the horse, then the wall and now this?

Her hat had flopped almost off to one side and she hurriedly tugged it back down over her face, her backpack being clung too, but the heavy reassuring weight of the gun resting at her side made her feel a little more secure even though she was scared witless by the giant bear of a man towering above her. Dark emerald eyes held a strangely bemused look that had lingered long after they had rumbled out of the city. Only the headlights of the vehicle lit up the dark night that still crowded in around them, showing she had not been asleep more than an hour at most.

"Stowaway." He remarked shortly, a hand reaching out to pick up DG by the front of the duster before she could escape his large grasping hand, leaving her dangling several inches off the ground, giving her a quite once over, but another bark of laughter rumbled out of his throat. "You chose the wrong vehicle to travel in, Lad."

"That is… an understatement." She muttered low, her face turning away from his, voice rougher with the dryness of her throat, blue eyes dropping closed. Before suddenly she found herself back on her feet, a hand picking up the hat, ruffling her hair madly before dropping the item back onto it.

"You what they were looking for?" The Driver questioned with a sharp look, watching the young boy before him seem to wish to vanish into a convenient hole in the ground if there had been one.

"I can pay." DG startled herself as well as the man with the offer, her fingers clenching tightly, knowing now that she was out of the City… she was quite utterly lost, her own sense of direction no better than Glitch's and as soon as the Adviser reported that she was missing… the entire royal guard would be out after her. "I can pay you."

"For what? To babysit you?" That gained another bemused chuckle from the olive-skinned 'garbageman', his finger poking lightly into DG's shoulder, his dark eyes suddenly catching the sharp look that was directed his way, blue eyes freezing him in place for a long moment with the determination and made his laughter die suddenly in his throat. "You serious, boy?"

"Deadly serious." Her gaze dipping again, the hat shielding most of her face from view, knowing if she were going to make it… she needed someone… and right now there was no one else she could trust, Raw being too far away… Glitch… she had betrayed him in such a manner that her heart ached terrible at the thought of what she had done, though knowing if he had pushed her harder… she wouldn't have had the courage to escape. Promising herself someday she would make it up to the braincase… or she would never be able to face him without the guilt born of necessity. As for Jeb, she did not know where he was… but hoped that somehow he too might believe that his father wasn't dead…

"Your rather mad to simply ask that of a stranger." A dark brown brow lifted upwards in question, though there was something about this kid that he couldn't quite put his finger one. "How much?"

Those blue eyes just gazed back at him, DG suddenly feeling that though this man looked like he could easily wrest a horse, that there was no danger from him. "All this." She offered out more than three quarters of the money she had taken from her room, all the money she had carefully saved when she had a chance too. And she was handing over the heavy bag, the glint of gold from within making the other eyebrow rise in surprise at the sheer amount being offered. "No questions asked."

"For this, Lad, you could have me run around naked through Central City." The bag was quickly snatched up and tucked into a large pocket in the man's long trenchcoat that could have easily have doubled for a tent. "You got a deal." An enormous hand was offered out to DG, as well as a broad grin, the man realising just how much his own luck had just changed, with this amount of money he could clear every debt he owed… and then some. He was not about to let a gift horse escape him.

Taking the proffered hand, her own vanished completely inside of the big one, which was being shaken with gusto before a sweeping up was giving towards the cabin of the truck, the slatted side being hoisted back up into place to prevent any more foul smelling objects to slide off the bed of the truck. "Aster." He identified himself as he swang up around the other side of the truck and into the driver's seat, glancing over at the kid who had dropped down against the side of the closed door. Shifting the truck into gear, they continued down the road, the driver glancing towards his new 'employer' with interest, he had never met someone quite like this stranger… who was far too trusting than he would be in the same situation. "Where you, we, heading to, boy?"

DG closed her eyes, feeling the gentle rock of the truck beneath her, almost like her father's pickup back in Kansas and far more familiar than the back of that horse… her mind drifting for a moment before she had to think quickly for a moment. "D… Galen." Almost wincing at the name… she couldn't believe she had just almost given herself away… "Passed Milltown."

"Alright then."

"Through the fields of the Papay." Her voice was low, her hand slipping beneath the edge of the overly long duster and her fingers brushed against the gun tucked into her belt, her fingers closing around it, feeling a little more secure in this. Though she knew… magic use would be a down right give away and couldn't risk using it…

"Whatever you say, Galen. You're the boss." Though he wasn't keen on going through the fields… at least he was getting paid for it...

* * *

Somewhere

Blood smeared across the floor as a strong hand was gripping the heavy shackles that were cuffed around his ankles, his head bumping against the hard stone slabs as he was being dragged through a long damp corridor. The groan of pain was swallowed hard as jagged blades of pain seared through every nerve and fibre of his being, his word swimming slowly as the overhead lighting flickered between glaringly bright and pitch-black above him. The dull throbbing ache slowly rippled out from the centre of his chest, spreading its claws across his ribs and leaving him feeling as if his heart had been forcibly torn from his body by a blunt spoon.

Abruptly his feet were dropped heavily to the ground, the chains rattling with a few clinks against the chilling stone beneath his back. A heavy door groaned open, the ancient metal hinges protesting the action before whoever it was that had brought him here was ducking through the low doorway.

"Brought him like you wanted."

Feet shuffled beyond the door, a few metal instruments clattering down onto a small tray with a soft tinker, before turning towards the doorway and the edges of light that brightened the laboratory slightly though not quite being able to chase away the oppressive gloom that lingered over everything. "I said, _alive_." Came the raspy reply, the voice sending a shiver down even Cain's spine at the insanity that lingered just beneath the surface of their 'leader'.

Suddenly a booted foot slammed into his side, gaining a soft gasp for breath from Cain, when he shifted slightly in reaction to the new wave of pain making its way through his overly abused nerves. His icy blue eyes blinked open again, catching only a glimpse of long spindly hands and a hooded face in the light of the doorway, before another sharp kick to his side forced him over onto his belly. Obviously not satisfying his capturer's wish for a more evident reaction to the torment. "He's alive."

Hands clawed at his clothes, digging into the deep slashes and single bullet hole that marred his chest, it took quite a lot to remain perfectly quiet as the alchemist was looking over the merchandise he had hired several thugs to bring to him. However, it was clear this particular Tin Man had managed to kill off the rest of the party that had been sent after him. Fingers scrapped slowly over his scalp, dragging his head upwards by his hair, the gnarled, twisted face of the alchemist peered so close he could smell the rank breath wafting over his face. "Barely… terrible damage… You disappoint me."

And suddenly there was a sudden click of a gun being taken off safety, the man that had brought him in suddenly whipping around coming face to face with a barrel pressed right between his eyes. "What is the meaning…" And before he could finish the question a single gunshot rang out, the sound deafening to Cain's ears as blood dripped from the perfectly circular hole in the centre of the thug's head as he dropped like a limp doll to the floor, blood slowly leaking out from beneath the man's skull.

"Clean that up. I want Mr Cain prepared… I have waited too long for this moment." The shuffling feet slowly moved around him as the fingernails gouged into his scalp drawing droplets of blood to the surface. "Also make sure all evidence of his survival is destroyed, I do not want any more people snooping around my activities." Before that twisted face turned back down to him, and a warped smile rose to those thin lips as he saw the flicker of understanding in the Tin man's eyes, even though he could not reply… "Welcome to Hell, Mr Cain."

* * *

Along The Old Road Outside Of Central City

_Welcome to Hell, Mr Cain…_ The rasping voice echoed through her head, the pure terror screaming through her body as she shuddered with the brief flashes of pain… The world rapidly spinning faster and faster as she struggled against the pull that was slowly pulling her under… A bloody face flared through her mind, blue eyes staring upwards at her as his voice was raised in an ungodly howl through her mind, his expression twisted into one she never wished to see again on another living person. A burning sear of heat blossomed across her chest, burning into her flesh and running in slow arcs of her flesh.

Everything started whirling faster and faster, her hands clawing at her chest as she felt only a fraction of what was happening to Cain… Her own screams tearing through her in a fevered pitch before a hand suddenly shook her shoulder hard, jolting her suddenly awake, the sound of her voice dying in the cabin of the truck as the dark green eyes of Aster leaned over slightly to look into her face before turning back towards the road outside illuminated by the headlights.

"Hey Boy… you're havin' a nightmare." The hand remained lightly on her arm, clenching around it but the only thing in the entire world that wasn't deciding to spiral off, her small fingers pressed against her chest, the stabs of pain slowly fading away with each jolt of the truck. "What the hell happened?"

"I…" Her voice died on her lips, face burying against her hands, not certain herself what exactly had happened… but just knowing that somewhere out there… Cain was in worse trouble then before… Whatever was happening was getting worse… "I don't know."

"You don't know why you started screamin' like a dying Papay?" A hand abruptly ruffled the short raven locks on her head, an attempt to give a little comfort because the sound had almost scared the life even out of him. "Well. None of my business." He did not push, turning around firmly in the seat, his hand withdrawing after a moment before he was gazing out into the night, though in the back of his mind he questioned if wherever the boy was going… wasn't going to get them both dead.

* * *

OOC: Here we are, and yup even a part for Cain. As for Raw, Glitch and Jeb we will be seeing them in coming chapters. So don't worry! :) Please review!


	4. Chapter 4: Adoring

Disclaimer: I do not own this... D:

* * *

**Chapter 4: Adoring**

Somewhere

Lights hovered overhead, the same deep almost ominous sway that rocked ever so slightly from side to side, the pain had slowly dulled as the freezing metal beneath him slowly began numbing away everything, the cold leaching away any warmth that he still possess. His arms strained against the bindings, the shackles pulling taut under the pressure before he slumped back down, his chest burning with the almost unbearable tightness that swept across his ribs.

Suddenly maniacal laughter twittered off to his left, his head twisting back, blue eyes scanning the darkness and coming face to face with the Alchemist, the gnarled features distorted grotesquely with the mirth the man felt at watching the great Tin Man reduced to such a state. The slow awkward limp became evident as the Alchemist slowly swept around the table, one foot half dragging with a scrapping shuffle across the stone floor. "There is no use, Mr Cain."

A hand clasped against his head, pinning it down to the headrest of the cold table. For a brief moment he caught sight of the corpse sprawled out in a similar fashion only a few feet away, the features having being twisted in one last moment of terror before the end had come. A leather band was buckled into place, holding his head still and his eyes stared upwards into the face of his capture, concealing every reaction to what he knew would come. "You will gain nothing from torturing me." His voice a mere hint above a whisper sounded deafeningly loud to his ears.

"Oh, I don't need you to talk." A hand seized his jaw, stilling the sharp jerking struggles as Cain was straining hard against his bonds, wanting to remove the smug little smile off the distorted features of the Alchemist. "I have my own methods of getting what I need." An arm sweeping out towards the corpse sprawled out on a similar plinth as he was, a clawed hand twisting the head around at an impossible angle as the face was revealed. "As you can see, Mr Reese was quite willing to help."

Cain yanked hard against the leather band and metal shackles, the links clicking together sharply as his blood boiled as he recognised one of his fellow Tin Men, one of those that had been reported missing. Yet, something about the corpse… was strikingly off, instead of a man that should have been well into his sixties, the one before him was a youth, barely older than his son Jeb. Still the face was definitely that of Mitchell Reese no matter the age. "I will kill you."

"Bold words." A short cackle of laughter escaped the Alchemist who was slowly circling Cain, those crimson tinged eyes studying his features with an intensity of interest that made his stomach almost lurch. "But I have heard them numerous times before, Mr Cain. And though some have gotten a little closer than others." A finger lightly brushed down across a cheek marked by shrivelled burnt flesh that had eaten away at one ear. "However, none have ever succeeded and all of them are now quite dead I assure you."

"What I want is in your mind…" A sharp fingernail traced a slow line across Cain's forehead, drawing a thin line of blood from the bruised and discoloured skin. "I want all that you have…" Leaning down, the mutated man hissed low for only him to hear, "I want the secrets that you hold… All of them."

Suddenly the door to the side swung open, sending a cascade of light into the dark recesses of the room, illuminating for a brief moment the horrors and half successful experiments that littered every surface in the dank expanse of the chamber that was far more vast that what had originally been exposed by the single light from above them. Two burly men carried in a large object, the soft low hum rumbling out from the strange metal box resting on intricately carved metal legs that was set down at the head of the table. The deep sound working its way into every single shred of his body as the table and his very bones vibrated along with the noise that was not quite audible yet still as clear as a bell in his mind.

"I want it, I know you were the one he gave it too." A hand brushed across his forehead, smearing the small thin line of blood across his ash pale skin, before lifting his crimson fingers to the lid of the heavy metal box, lightly tracing the seal on the edge of it as it slowly began humming faster. Each low pulse coming quicker, and quicker as the light was cut from outside as the men hurried away, the door thumping closed and leaving them in an overwhelming gloom.

Yet, across the ceiling a faint green radiance slowly began to spread, as a tiny crystal no bigger then a fingernail slowly began to rise from within its cage, the blood awakening it and its song reaching out towards Cain.

"Remember the Mystic Man." The harsh rasp of irritation and low malice rose from within him, a hand dragging his head backwards at a rather unnatural again, bringing both the Alchemist's face and the small emerald shard into view. The tiny gem hovered above the open lid of the box, the thing slowly beginning to spin around, running like a clock hand backwards. The clawed hand reached out to grip the rotating jewel, scarlet drops spattered down across his cheek as the sudden green light flared a deep bloody red, and a vivid flash that rushed over him like a wave. "Remember the green city…"

A sudden shift rippled through his body, his soul being jerked hard almost out of his body, a white shiver rising from his flesh as his mouth opened against the sudden feeling of disembodiment. The deep shadow of bright verdant green flared across his vision blinding for a moment, while memories were roughly pulled to the surface as if a Viewer had reached into his brain and caught hold of a thread slowly beginning to unravel it.

_"Do you know what this is?" The Mystic Man stood before a large painting that decorated one wall of the man's greeting room, gesturing towards the image of a shining city, its roofs and streets glittering with the brilliant sheen of Emeralds in the light of the suns rising over the backdrop. Pausing on his examination of the image entitled 'The Emerald City', a hand lightly reached out to hover over the soft sweeping fields that decorated the landscape surrounding the magnificent metropolis._

A wordless sound escaped his lips as the memory blurred and flared into being, the tiny string being yanked hard from the end, drawing more slowly out of him in a fine thread that was being wound as an almost invisible line around the hand and gem. Almost like wool being processed on a spinning wheel and being slowly coiled around a spindle.

"Yes, that is it. Return to your time with him… focus." Came the soft rasp, urging the memory to the surface, though it was faded and a half remembered moment from a time in his passed before all this had happened… before the witch and the O.Z. being plunged into darkness and famine. "Very promising."

_"Another one?" The other Tin Man laughed, the laughter-lined face of Mitchell Reese danced before his eyes, observing the younger man with bemusement as Wyatt Cain manoeuvred a struggling criminal in through the doors, the cuffed youth wearing more jewellery and shiny object than a decorated Solstice tree. A hand thumped against his back, warmly squeezing his shoulder before a larger hand reached out to grip the bonds of the walking jewellery store. "Not a smart one, are you?" The older policeman mused to the captive that was exclaiming he did nothing wrong…_

His body jerked in reaction to the memory a shiver of freezing cold danced across his skin, the briefest moment of recognition between the laughing man and the corpse across from him resulted in another flash of memories that danced through his head. Gooseflesh prickled across his arms and legs, the breath being sucked out of his lungs and making any attempt to speak impossible. His mind attempting to drive towards other memories away from those he was being forcefully directed to.

"Go back." A voice hissed into his ear, the Alchemist viewing the memories as if he were there in Cain's place, each emotion and physical action being relieved within a moment as it was being almost erased from Tin Man's mind. "The City." The man attempting to direct the flow of thoughts, driving the twirling gem on with the offer of more blood… more of these memories to feed the strange unnatural hunger.

Abruptly he was dumped into a slightly later memory, his eyelids dropping closed, shoulders trembling under the force of the draw, the echoes of death flaring around him brilliantly, disjointed as if he was watching from outside of his own body at the memories flashing by him.

_"Adora!" His voice carried through the thick undergrowth as he rushed through it, his body twisting through the waves of green branches. "Jeb!" Another shout, loud and clearer than the first, while he pushed himself faster, everything spinning, heart racing in his chest, "Adora!" _

_And suddenly breaking through the undergrowth, he jolted to a halt, eyes fixing on the monstrosity of another iron maiden, the heavy metal contraption sitting on a steep angle, backing onto the trees facing towards him a little. Slowly moving towards it, his heart caught slowly in his throat, finding the catches unlocked on the side, yet he flung it open, blue eyes being met with a bare interior. A whisper of his son's name escaping his lips, as a few stray drops of water trickled down onto him. _

"Go back!" The Alchemist roared, a new blossom of pain erupting along his side, his body shuddering under the sharp stabs of burning hot soots that rippled through his gut and radiating outwards across his limps and weighing them down like lead. "The city! Where is the city, Cain?" For the man had ignored the images that became vivid and brilliant as only a short few months time had passed since that horrifying moment.

_Before he twisted slightly, stepped passed it and jolted sharply at the sight of a wooden board held upright in the earth, his feet taking him forwards as his heart was slowly sinking even further. Everything melted away as his hat was pressed against his chest, his knees giving way as he sank down to the ground before the grave marker. His heart being torn clear out of his body at the name of 'Adora Cain' written upon the marker, eyes burning with the tears that were silently sliding down across his cheeks, he reached out a shaking hand to touch the damp wood, ignoring the soft rain that had slowly begun to fall. _

_Yet, suddenly there was a warm hand squeezing his shoulder softly, the presence of DG hovering close in an effort to comfort him in some small way, though no words passed between them in that silent moment of grief. Leaning forwards, his lips lightly touched the damp wood, salty drops sliding down onto the moss and small flowers that were withered on top of the shallow mound. And from his fingers dropped the shiny Tin Man badge, the object being left behind to remain with his wife…_

The life was slowly seeping out of his body, the threads throbbing with the soft sound of his heartbeat as the months that had passed were slowly being drawn from his wounded frame, each memory becoming blurred and faded as they were sucked away after he had relieved them. A hand gripped his throat tightly, squeezing hard and forcing Cain's eyes open to gaze upwards into the burning crimson brown eyes of the Alchemist, the man's expression darkening with each passing second. "Stop playing around, Mr Cain. I have little patience for this."

His eyes stared upwards, the thread becoming broader and thicker, as other memories danced across his mind, the long years of imprisonment… and the last year they had been together… before Zero had come to their home… before he had been found out…

"Adora? My Adora?" The Alchemist gritted out, the image and fresh pain of that particular discovery flared out horribly, his twisted features warping even further with the hatred that slowly rose and also was washing over Cain as well. The thread tangling again tightly around the man's fingers, the life that was slowly been drained from Cain coiling into the body of the man, his features slowly being magically repaired as Cain's own memories were stolen as payment for the repairs being done.

_The image of Adora trapped and bloody in the hands of Zero flared into life, the man's hands wrapped around the slender throat as she struggled hard against her captors against the backdrop of the house by the white Elm. Her screams suddenly dying on her lips, a sickening crack sounding clearly though the heavy rain, her head twisting sharply at a grotesque angle. Her eyes that had once held such love and passion faded slowly into darkness as she flopped limply to the ground like a ragdoll. Her eyes staring dully at him all the life extinguished in one violent moment, rain drops sliding down her cheeks and almost made her look as if she were crying._

The world twisted sharply as the face over his appeared again, his attempts at preventing his memories being reached only resulting in recent wounds being forced open sharply, yet the images, the visual picture of those thoughts were fading, being stolen from him before his mental fingers could grasp the thread as it unravelled faster and faster.

The memories surfacing of the imprisonment of Zero infuriated the man, and for a brief instant when he looked up he almost recognised the dark brown eyes of a rival who had also been in pursuit of Adora's attentions… a man that had committed such crimes that even he shuddered at the memory of the magic and power that had dwarfed so many others. And also that this man had been used by the Witch in her plots from what he knew… Could this truly be the same old man? One that should have been dead years ago… Satir Velmar.

Before the wave of displacement shivered through every muscle of his body, slowly contracting inwards on itself in a slow migrating wave of feeling, his skin gradually tautening as the life was drawn from him, and the years were slowly being dragged from his body. And the bright light of the gem blinded him completely to the world as he tumbled backwards further into his memories.

* * *

Ozia Manor, Along The Old Road, Near Central City

A shriek escaped her lips as she bolted upright, sheets tangling around her limbs and making her struggle sharply against them, while the soft shivering waves of terror ran their way across her body. Azkadellia clutched at the sheets, her struggles becoming more pronounced, for as each moment passed her the feeling of imprisonment, of complete and utter claustrophobia rose upwards within her belly sending her heart racing faster and faster.

Suddenly her bedroom door crashed open, a gun drawn and scanning the room as a weary blonde haired man stood in the doorway, his chest heaving slightly as he flicked on the lights with one hand, clearing the room of for any possible danger, while his eyes settled slowly on the woman in the centre of the large bed. The gun was holstered as he crossed the beautifully furnished room to suddenly clamp his hands down around the slender wrists, carefully disentangling her from the sheets and holding her hands still, while she attempted to get as far away as possible from the strong grip on her.

"Azkadellia." Jeb's tired voice broke through the terror of the nightmare, his grip tightening, when he tugged her forwards and into the light of the nearby lamp, dipping in so that she could catch a glimpse of his face in the gloom of her bedroom. "Wake up, it's just a dream."

She shivered sharply, her wide brown eyes blinking closed for a long moment before she finally came back to herself, trembling and trying to swallow the sobs that broke through her usually calm mask. Her hands finally pulling free from the almost bruising grip, the elder Princess was shaking like a leaf in the aftermath of her nightmare. "Jeb?" Doe brown eyes had lifted to the man's face, staring at him for a long moment before her face buried themselves back into her hands and soft silent sobs were escaping her lips.

For all the anger… all the hatred he had had for this one woman, never quite believing that the 'truth' about that a Witch had possess her and forced her to do such terrible things. As much has he had been a sceptic in the beginning, the long months watching her for any sign of darkness any sign of that evil and he would have killed her within a heartbeat. But watching those tears trickle across her fingers, he knew this woman no matter how you looked at it was definitely not the same one as had ordered the death of him and his mother…

"Yes, Princess." He responded, though his expression reverted back to that solemn lifeless one that had been the only one she had seen for days… the news of his father's death had stolen the very life out of the man, though in the darkness of the night she had heard the distant sound of his tears, which tore into her as if they were her own.

"Thankyou." Her brown eyes closed, trying to cut out terror of the memory, the image of Ambrose's terror as his brain was torn from his head, the horror of watching the intelligence and spark of something uniquely his die in his eyes… Fingers were scrubbing hard at her eyes, trying in vain to remove the tears that were continuing to fall. "Thankyou for waking me." The honest words reinforced the strange understanding between them, she had very quickly learned to appreciate the sometimes gruff presence of the young blonde fighter, for though he would always continue to hate her in some small way, he had prevented several attempts on her life.

"It was clearer this time." Brown eyes lifted to gaze into blue, her hands wringing together in her lap, "I saw his face this time…"

"This is good news." The warm hand touched against her shoulder lightly, his own silent apology for the faint bruises that dusted her wrists from his overpowering grip he had used on her. "Do you think you can identify him now?"

"I think I might be able to." Her heart was suddenly leaping at the possibility, for the Princess sort to right as many of the wrongs the Witch was responsible for, for in her memories were keys to who had done what… and thus she had been able to bring together several families, others she had been able to try to give some recompense too. But it was the inability for any of the Alchemists that she knew to successfully replace Ambrose's brain back into his body that haunted her most. Her eyes closing tightly, her heart squeezing one at the thought of the man, a very faint flush working its way across her cheeks. It was in her memories of the operation she had supervised being done on Ambrose that would give them the key to finding the man who had performed the operation. For if he could take it out… then it was most certain that he had done something to prevent it ever going back in…

The distant sound of footsteps moving down the corridor made her head snap upwards, her eyes flickering to Jeb and then back out into the darkness, through the open door. It was impossible… he couldn't be here… And suddenly her bare feet hit the floor as she slipped passed Jeb, sliding slightly as she found herself crashing into a strong chest and almost rebounding onto the floor, but strong arms suddenly wrapped around her shoulders, keeping her upright.

Wide brown eyes stared upwards, her lips opening to try to give out a welcome to the man before it died on her lips, Glitch's expression was grave, the usually bright and always cheerful man who had forgiven her… forgiven what had happen to him and had never once blamed her for it… gazed down at her with dark eyes, ones that sent a jolt of fear rushing down her spine.

"Azkadellia. I need your help." The sometimes twitchy personality had sobered, his head lifting upwards to catch sight of the youth still standing beside the bed, his eyes narrowing ever so slightly as his grip around the woman's slender shoulders tightened ever so faintly in an almost possessive motion. "Yours too, Mr Cain."

"Princess DG has gone after the Tin Man."

* * *

The Old Road, Near Milltown

The first burnished rays of dawn were slowly peeking over the edge of the horizon, the long drive through the night having made a fair distance along the old road, yet now there was a moment where DG was leaning close to the open window on her side of the truck, blue eyes staring out into the fading darkness and in through the trees towards where she was sure Milltown sat. A small stab of pain slowly wound its way through her heart at the thought of her parents… her foster parents who had vanished from her life as if they had never been in it.

For as much as she wished to ask Aster to stop the truck, to pull over and allow her to go to that place her father had always talked about, the one 'perfect' place in the world, she knew she couldn't. Because each moment now meant something, a shiver rippled down her spine at that thought, the raw scream hovering in the back of her mind urging her to hurry as fast as she could. "I promise to visit." She whispered softly, resting her chin on her arm as it sat on the wound down window.

"Hey, Lad." Something was suddenly thrust into her lap, her eyes blinking suddenly being dragged from her thoughts, before regarding the piece of fruit and hunk of bread that rested on her knees, before turning to regard her new companion. "Eat somethin'. Before you get any scrawnier." There was a large grin and a wink at that, though she tried to return it she winced as that large hand descended on her head once more, rubbed furiously for a moment before returning to the wheel.

"I am not scrawny." DG barked back, giving the man a very short glare before trying almost in vain to right her now messy hair. Her lips curved in a rather almost childish expression of distaste and shot the man

"You are. Like a twig." That got another ripple of laughter from the large man, and she realised that he could barely fit properly into the cab, his knees so close to the steering wheel that it was almost catching the edge of it. Dark green eyes flickered back over to the 'boy', before glancing out the window to the right for a long moment. "So Galen, what exactly is it we are after?"

For a long moment she paused, her thoughts running through the possibility of telling the truth or lying through her teeth to this man. "I owe someone a favour…" That didn't quite sound right… not even convincing that she would go to some lengths to leave the castle and escape the City. "A big favour and I have to find him…"

Though it was highly vague and didn't even start covering the information he wanted, he gave a slightly nod before sighing, this kid was definitely in trouble… of the worst kind. Running away. That much was obvious from the style of exit from Central City the boy had chosen. "Well, I guess lad, I'm in this for the long haul." A hand ran back through his dark chocolate locks, the long strands clinging to his hand before he flattened them back down against his broad skull. "But I need to deliver my cargo on the way." A thumb jerking back towards the large metal box that was sitting underneath the pile of garbage just behind him, "Don't worry yourself though, won't take long."

"Famous last words…" She sighed softly, just almost being able to predict that something… something was going to happen now that he said 'it won't take long'.

"Famous…?" One eyebrow twitched upwards, questioning and pausing for a moment to watch the kid out of the corner of his eye, now he definitely knew whoever this kid was… he was going to be neck deep in trouble before he could count to ten. But for some reason, he didn't mind one bit. "Whatever you say, Lad, whatever you say…"

* * *

Victory Celebrations, Day After The Eclipse, Royal Palace, Central City

The raw sound was turned into a soft mumble of noise from within the great ballroom of the Central City Palace, the triumph over the Witch, and to some Azkadellia, and return of the Queen to the throne was being marked as a great victory for the light. The party having begun to truly move into the swing of joy and dance a few hours before and now was nowhere near its climax, the music streaming outwards cutting across the voices and filling the gardens with the bright cheerful sound. But it was not enough to warm her heart, not enough to cut away the chill of despair for all those that had lost their lives in this battle against the Witch, nor could she simply push away the guilt that clung to her heart at the revelation that it had been here that released the demon from her prison.

Suddenly she realised she wasn't the only one who had sort to escape the vivid mass of finely dressed people and bedazzled Resistance Fighters mingling together within the high faulted rooms behind her. In the long shadows of a tree, Wyatt Cain rested against the trunk, his tailored clothes done in rich blues and whites offset by the silvery pistol resting in his hands, the formal wear looking rather out of place on the man, yet definitely gave him a strange… rather noble air and his eyes closed as if fallen asleep in the shelter of the gardens.

Her fingers twisted into the long red pleats of her fine dress, the silken wispy fabric barely making a sound as DG slowly approached him, her heart suddenly hammering in her chest. Teeth catching her lower lip after a moment, just unable to take her eyes off him, before a delicate blush rose along her cheekbones head turning away. Something within her squeezing ever so slightly at the sight of him like that, unable to think anything at all…

"I see I'm not the only one who decided to leave the party." The slightly husky voice startled her, his eyes remaining closed as he shifted ever so slightly, head turning a little towards the sound of her shoes on the manicured lawn.

"I don't feel comfortable with… so many people…" Head ducking away, she stood beside him, glancing back over a slender shoulder at the doorway she had just come through as the servants carefully closed it once more muffling the sounds from inside further. "I'm a country bumpkin."

A small smile curved his lips at that, shifting ever so slightly to one side and she took the invitation instantly, dropping down to the grass beside him and offering a tiny smile of her own. Her fingers reaching out to snare his hat and run her fingertips over the fine felt, tracing lightly around the rim, before his attention was turning to Cain. "Indeed you are, Kiddo."

A pout formed on her lips as a finger poked him in the shoulder, shuffling even closer to him again, the faint breeze sending a very slight shiver down her spine. "I am not a kid." Before his hat was completely freed from his grip and placed on the other side of her, making sure it was clearly out of reach for him, though she did get a low growl of annoyance, before a hand was being held out to her, his eyes remaining closed as he demanded his hat back from her.

"Sure thing, Kid." He mused, ribbing her slightly with the intentional repetition, one pale blue eye popped open to look at her, though his hand reached across her to go after the hat, the searching hand suddenly been captured in two smaller ones. A soft touch brushing against the silver of his wedding ring, before it flittered away, both eyes suddenly opened as he watched the unreadable expression pass across her face. "DG?" His voice quested softly, his hand being caught tightly in her grip, her fingers white knuckled and her bemusement over the hat fading quickly away to be replaced by something that seized his throat abruptly and quieted any more words from him.

"It's my fault." If he hadn't been listening intently to her he would have missed the quiet words, her head dipping sharply so that long strands of raven hair fell across her features obscuring them from view. "It's my fault that she's dead… that… so many are dead." A finger brushed across the silver band before her fingers jerked away as if scorched by the reflective metal.

"That's impossible. Zero killed… Adora." He managed to get out, his azure eyes running across her downcast features, feeling the horrible shadow of both that pain… but also the new one at seeing her tormenting herself over something she was not responsible for. His free hand hesitated before it brushed the stray strands of hair out of her face, lifting her chin and catching sight of the tears slowly streaking down her cheeks, the deep shadows of guilt clouding those usually perfectly blue eyes. "Kid… DG, it was not your fault."

"Isn't it?" She challenged, her chin coming up, her entire face looking so crestfallen he wished he could find some way to erase all the misery that had come barrelling into her life within the passed two weeks… "Isn't it, Tin Man?" The Princess suddenly trying to shake her hands free of his, the warmth of his touch burning into her like a hot knife. Her heart aching horribly at the thought that she had hurt him… through her careless actions… Blue eyes darting away from his, struggling to not meet his eyes as that strong hand was forcing her jaw upwards, leaning over her slightly, while a soft thumb brushed at the tears that stung her eyes and left her cheeks red and raw.

"Look at me, DG." Every contact between them was suddenly gentle and filled with an emotion that she could not describe as she found herself suddenly tumbling forwards into his arms, her feeble attempts at escaping the embrace proving quite impossible, when those arms snapped closed light a string. "Look at me." His voice so soft against her ear, her head lifted so that their eyes met for one brief moment and she saw the truth that he truly did not blame her for anything within them. "It isn't your fault."

The dam broke suddenly within her, spilling out over her like a tidal wave, her tears falling faster as she sobbed into his shoulder, her face burying itself against the warmth of his shirt, dampening it with each new drop, a hand resting against her hair, lightly stroking it as he whispered soft reassuring words under his breath. Though she could not hear them, the vibration from his chest and throat soothed away a little of the pain, her fingers curling into the woollen material of his shirt, twisting it sharply and refusing to let go to the one lifeline that had suddenly come when she needed it the most.

Slowly the tears and muffled sobs began to slow, shoulders trembling with the tiny hiccups realising that she had drenched his shirt with her tears, yet the warmth and security of his embrace left her wanting… Twisting slightly, she realised just how big a fool she had made of herself in front of Cain, her hands pushing against his chest lightly, her legs tucked up beneath her resting across his legs, her red dress brushing across his black straight-legged pants. "I'm sorry…"

"Don't be." Came the simple response, her head being suddenly pulled back against his dry shoulder, the strong arms around her refusing to release her, no matter how much she was going to decide to struggle, the man quite clearly not able to let her off on her own after such a scene. "Just stay, DG, just stay here. I promise nothing will happen to you."

The offer made her heart leap into her throat, surprise at such words showing in her face, before his hand was slowly stroking through her hair, doing the only thing he knew how and being glad that it was him she had allowed to comfort her. "Really?" Her weary voice muffled against his shirt, fingers returning to curl back into it, crushing the fabric between her fingers.

"Yes, really." His slightly stubbled cheek rested against the silky soft raven locks of her hair, shifting her weight closer in against him so that she was being tucked suddenly within the folds of his jacket he slipped around her, using the edge of his cuff to brush away the last of the moisture from her tears. Both of them falling silent in the deep shadows of the tree and neither seemed to care about the celebrations in the background, more intent on one another as something new and fragile found a place to grow within their hearts.

* * *

OOC: Thankyou for being patient with me while I get through the first parts of the story, but hopefully the two 'fluffy' moments XD make up for the wait! Though I might add in a little tension between Glitch and Azkadellia, is it me or is Glitch actually jealous? LOL. PLEASE REVIEW! begs so that I know what you think


	5. Chapter 5: Reasoning

Disclaimer: I own nothing but Aster and my red head :)

* * *

**Chapter 5: Reasoning**

Somewhere

His body slammed into the cold hard floor, sliding slightly across it with the momentum of the throw, two of the burly guards from earlier snickered slightly in the doorway, before the heavy iron door swung shut and was bolted from the outside. A soft groan escaped his lips as he was lifting his head to glance around the cell, the damp coldness seeping quickly into his body as he struggled to rise to his feet. Every part of him screamed in pain, while he clawed his way to the small cot, his large frame flopping down onto it and sagging heavily into the only dry things in the entire cramped room.

Head dropping back against what barely passed as a pillow, his blue eyes closed tightly, every part of him having been sent reeling by… by whatever that had been. The memories… so many memories that had once been perfectly clear were now nothing but a fuzzy blur before him, each one having been forcibly stolen over the last hours. How long he had been trapped like that, he didn't know…

Shifting slowly onto his side, every muscle protested while he gazed out through the slats between the bars, looking through at the passing figures that ambled along down the corridor, while in the distant the sounds of screaming could be heard… a bone chilling sound that gripped something tightly inside of him. When he was certain that all of the guards had passed by, a hand slowly slipped into the remains of his shirt, searching for something within a small inner pocket. Finding what he sort, the small object was lifted into the light, the tiny doll dressed in green rested in his palm, his fingers lightly brushing over the one thing he had left. It was DG's dancing doll, something she had given him…

Cain lightly brushed a finger over the soft brown strands of the doll's hair, the dress brushing across his palms before he was carefully tucking it back in against his chest, hiding it within one closed had, wanting only to hold on to it to keep it safe. His heart aching at the thought of the woman, having abandoned her when she had needed him most… was he not a coward for doing so? For running... Which was quite unlike him… Running from the emotions that had taken his heart hostage. But he had had good reason… if only to spare them the consequences of him not leaving…

"DG."

"_You summoned me, your Highness." Wyatt Cain stood before the Queen, bowing respectfully before lifting pale blue eyes up to the woman's calm features, the woman unnerving him in a way he could not quite describe. _

"_Yes, Mr Cain." Her lavender eyes were studying his face, pausing for a moment to straighten slightly, those eyes almost attempting to stare right through him as if trying to work out everything that sat beneath his serious expression. "I have a request." Eyes narrowed ever so slightly upon his that met hers without hesitation. "I wish for you to show proper respect to my Daughter's position, for she will eventually take over the throne from me and I find it… highly inappropriate that you are so candid with her." _

"_Meaning?" His eyes hardening at those words, knowing almost exactly what she was getting at, his heart instantly rebelling against the thought of ever leaving DG, he had stood by patiently while the others were slowly being pulled from DG's life, but he had remained steadfast watching over her, though with each moment in her presence, he was loosing more and more of his heart… _

"_Your presence is a distraction from her duties and also an inconvenience for her as there are others more suited to her and she is refusing all advances." That single thought was making her expression harden sharply, pinning him to the spot with a short glare, those lavender eyes of hers burning into him. "Your relations with my daughter must end."_

_A bright flare of joy suddenly speared upwards through his heart lancing it upon the Queen's words, DG was refusing other suitors? A part of him was rejoicing, knowing that maybe the strange affection that was developing was not unrequited… "I will not do such a thing." His expression hardened further in defiance of the Queen's irritation and indignance directed straight at him. _

"_Yes, you will." Her hands were clenching slightly, her body stiffening and catching the slight change in the man before him, her suspicions slowly been aroused as she watched him. "My daughter belongs to a different world than you, Mr Cain. And you will respect that and also my authority." _

"_My loyalty, Highness, is _respectfully_ to Princess Dorothy Gale." That hat dipping down to block his face more firmly from her view, standing straight with his hands at his sides and standing in clear defiance of the Queen. "As it will always continue to be." _

"_Then think about it like this, Mr Cain." There was a visible crackle of rage just beneath that calm surface, her voice remaining soft and icy calm, her hands twitching ever so slightly as she found this Tin Man had abandoned a part of his duty to the Throne in favour of a 'friend'. "Your son is currently in a rather prominent position within the Royal Guard." Her eyes were calculating just what it would take to 'convince' this man to abandoned his self-righteous pursuit of loyalty. _

"_You…" _

"_I would, Mr Cain. I will not tolerate your insolence." Standing upwards from her chair, the slender woman coming down the stairs to confront the Tin Man, the tall woman just managing to pass his shoulder, her lavender eyes burning sharply into him. "Do you think she would ever love you?" The voice that hissed it made him jerk at the sound, his blue eyes widening as he turned slightly to catch her face but she was circling him slowly. "Do you think it is possible for a Princess and a Tin Man…? Its preposterous and no one will ever accept it." _

_The threat was hanging over him, his son's position and chance for a life within a world that could allow him to go much farther than anything else would… or his selfish desire to remain with the woman that had stolen a part of his heart that had thought it would never feel again… _

"_Would you want your son to suffer a life without security? Or have my daughter being scrutinised by her peers all for your sake? Do you honestly think she could love you back?" Her voice was a soft whisper, yet hidden within the silken tone was a sharp razor ready to slash him to pieces at the first chance. "Are you so selfish to do such a thing?" _

"_No, your Highness…" Came the reply, Wyatt Cain feeling the heavy claws of betrayal settle into his heart. Was this what the Queen really was? Deception and a woman that would do anything to get the result she wished for…? "No. I will leave Highness." _

"_Good, I am glad you are starting to see things my way. You will have your orders before the day is out." Her small smile appeared as she rounded the other side of him and appearing before him again, her Lavender eyes holding a hint of triumph, before waving a hand, "You are dismissed."_

_And he turned without another word, disappearing out the doorway, his footsteps echoing as he went, his heart sinking with each step, knowing he had just torn out his own heart._

The thought of the woman's face… of DG's tears the moment he had been shot, the vague image of the Princess kneeling over him had sent a chilling wave through him… A hand coming to rub at the wound and his eyebrows knitted together sharply when he found it was lacking, though his ribs still held the horrible ache of the impact…

Shifting upwards, his eyes were slowly adjusting to the dimness as he raised his hands upwards, turning his fingers over in search of the long scars that showed where he had literally clawed at the cold inside metal of the Iron Maiden, when he had been imprisoned within it. The shudder of that claustrophobia springing to his mind as he glanced around, before he shoved that thought as far away as possible from his mind as possible. Instead of the smoothed out flesh that only hinted at the soft silvery scars, his fingers were raw and torn, his body jolting back slightly at the sight of it.

Instantly he was checking for the fang marks of the Papay that had bitten him on the lower leg, the calf revealing only smooth flesh to his fingertips. It was if his body had been thrust backwards through its memory, new scars becoming nothing more than ghosts and old scars being reopened once more.

Before he stared out the doorway, a question lingering on his thoughts. What had the Alchemist done to him?

"You too?" The voice abruptly interrupted his thoughts, his head snapping upwards as he gazed across the corridor to the opposite cell, a young face peering at him from between the bars. A girl barely only older than his son appeared for a moment before stepping back as a guard passed their cells by and leered at her lecherously. It took her several moments to reappear, her expression a grave, cheeks so pale and drawn with being imprisoned for so long. "Just come back from a session with… you-know-who?" A slender finger pointed down the hallway towards the laboratory.

"Session?" His voice was huskier with thirst as he was sitting up against the wall, trying to prop his body upright as much as he could, given the state he was in. Though his brows knitted together slightly, while he examined the woman's face, trying to see if there was anything familiar about it… anything at all.

"I guess that was your first one than…" A soft sigh escaped her, head tipping forwards against the bars and long brilliant red strands fell forwards into the light, the colour so vivid it would make a tomato look pale in comparison. "I use to be sixty annuals when I was brought here… or so… I was told, and now I'm barely twenty... "

Cain stared at the youth who could barely pass as eighteen annuals at the oldest, orange gold eyes blinked at him in response to the hard stare he shot her. She could definitely not be sixty or have been such an age…

"I guess… Mitchell isn't coming back…" Her voice faltered for a long moment, a shiver running down her spine felt the creeping dread rise up within her belly, her face vanishing from between the bars as she retreated. The woman could remember the man across from her, the one that had been brought in a little before she had arrived… She knew what it meant when someone didn't return… "That use to be his cell."

The Tin Man jerked at that, straightened sharply at her words, before he hissed in pain as abused muscles reinforced the idea that moving wasn't such a good thing… "Mitchell Reese?"

"Yes. That is what he said his name was…" Her head dipped upwards slightly, before something was slipped across the floor into his cell, the water sloshing a little out of the bowl and she appeared again at the locked door. "Did you see him?" Perking up, the girl was looking hopeful that her companion of the last few months had managed to remain alive even though he had not returned for a few days now.

"Yes, I did see him." But his voice dropped slightly, remembering the horrifying expression the man had worn even after he died. "He's dead."

* * *

Dampre Trail, Outside The Fields Of The Papay

The truck slowly rumbled up the path, the tires squeaking slightly on the smooth cobbles, before it ground to a halt in a clearing that was situated just outside of the long rows of bare trees of the Papay Orchards. Her eyes turned towards the bleak landscape beyond the open woodland, feeling a slow shiver ripple through her before her head turned towards her companion. "So what kind of… people are we meeting?"

Watching him exit the vehicle, the other side of the slats was freed when the bolt that held it in place was slipped out and a pile of garbage spilled downwards, a rather uninviting scent to say the least, though it provided a second advantage, the smell of rotten things sent the Papay running in the opposite direction. His hand jamming its way into the gooey mixture and wrenching something free from within the mess, the heavy metal container sliding across the flatbed, then once he had a good grip on the other handle the heavy box was settled down onto the ground beside the open driver's door.

"Don't know." He gave a slight shrug, his head tipping around the edge of the door to peer inside at DG who sat curled up in the passenger's her blue eyes marked with exhaustion from the sleepless night, but still a little curious.

"You don't know?" Shifting slightly in her seat, she pushed herself upwards and struggled across to sit in his seat, her legs dangling out the door, getting a good look at the heavy iron box that rested at his feet. One of her boots lightly tapped against the side, gaining a slightly hollow ringing from within, leaving her wondering what was indeed within the firmly locked trunk. "Then how do you know they're the right people?"

"Trust me, we'll know…" A finger poked her forehead, pushing her head back a little so he could look into her eyes clearly. "Don't worry, Lad, we'll be moving as soon as I get my fee for this trinket." Before an olive hand brushed back through his hair, tugging at the roots of it in a tiny anxious gesture. "I was surprised how much they were willing to pay for this thing…" A steel capped boot giving the box a push away from the side of the car, just before there was a faint sound of footsteps coming from through the woodland trees.

A group of at least half a dozen armed people weaved their way towards them through the thin undergrowth, all of them slightly ragged and time worn, reminding her strangely of Jeb's rebels… All were heavily armed and wore a look that sent a sharp shiver down her spine, her hand instantly resting near the pummel of the pistol.

One of the Aster's large hands reached out to slide underneath the badly torn driver's seat, his fingers closing around something as he withdrew a heavy shotgun from its hiding place, setting it down beside the truck, as if a way to tell the people that were approaching if things weren't civil he would act more like the farmer he suddenly seemed like. With the truck and shotgun… and also the produce DG had seen him deliver, her impression of the giant bear of a man went from 'possible thug' to 'Farmer turned small time thug.' A small smile touched her lips at that thought, one small thing between worlds that hadn't changed, the gun totting farmer that would start yelling 'get off my property' at the next chance he got still existed even here in the O.Z.

"Lad?" Glancing at DG still sitting in the driver's seat, her legs dangling out the door, an eyebrow raised at the first hint of a smile he had caught from the boy since they had met. "You armed?" His voice was a rough whisper, when she realised just how wrong this drop off was. A hand instantly touched the six-shooter that rested in the waistband of her trousers, slipping it out a little so that it would not get caught on the large duster she wore, eyes glancing back up to catch the faint nod from Aster before her attention was back on the approaching band of people.

"Have you got what we requested?" One of the older men, scruffy and bearded, questioned, one gun slung low against his shoulder, but cocked ever so slightly ready to shoot at a moment's notice. Giving away that they had just stumbled in on a rather nasty situation… it was clear Aster had not been expecting this. The man before her squinting at them, before whispering something to one of the others, a ripple of relief flickered through the others as they were now certain that what they had been hired to find was right before them and quite easily within their reach.

"Of coarse." Came the gruff reply, the dark green eyes of the Farmer turning towards who had spoken, before he was shifting the box forwards, dipping down to run his fingers against the edge of the heavily sealed box, a hand digging into a pocket to produce a key to unlock the heavy bolt at the top of the thing. A hard yank and the long bolt slipped free, allowing the lid to be open revealing a small carved figurine of a lion that had been sitting within the dark confines, lifting it up so that the green jade and emerald caught the sunlight dipping in through the trees.

The once blue sky was suddenly filled with small fluffy clouds, as if an invisible string had yanked them inwards from all directions. The first spattering of rain drummed softly against the roof of the truck, the raw magic she felt in each raindrop that slid against her hand, made a slowly shiver ripple up her spine. Even DG was staring at the small object, one that was far beyond any that she expected to come out of such a box, the fragile carving making her entire body hum softly with a type of magic she couldn't quite describe, but she knew for sure, no simple thug should have even been able to get his hands on such a thing. Leaving her one conclusion.

However, the others were reaching a difference conclusion to her, while the building rain was soon slowly drenching them, the clouds gathering at an unnatural place straight over where the small trinket had been exposed to the sunlight. The tiny emerald sparks of magic fluttered like small butterflies across the surface of the polished stone, the pulsing radiance lit up the man's features as the increasing darkness cast by the rain clouds allowed the inner glow from the stone to completely surface.

"Let me guess, you stole it?" She hissed at him, blue eyes narrowing slightly, before a shiver ran through her as lightning abruptly crackled across the sky, the small butterflies becoming more and more energetic with the increasing momentum of the sudden storm roaring overhead. All she hoped was this wouldn't create a tornado…

"Well, it seemed like a good idea at the time." He gave her a sort of guilty grin, but even his enthusiasm over this was quickly fading as the rain became heavier within the next few heartbeats. The dark brown locks of hair were suddenly plastered against his cheeks and jaw, making him look quite like a drowned rat in the process. "You think they noticed?"

She wanted to laugh at the absurdity of the entire exchange. But the small trinket was definitely not something she wanted these people to have. "Do you think they honestly care?" A hand curled into his sleeve, tugging him back a little, towards the cab of the truck. "Do you think it is a good idea to give it too them…"

"I would reason not…" His brows dropped against each other then, his expression darkening slowly at the look of the people he had dealt with several times before but never seemed to have a problem with. Yet, this time there was a rather distinctive feeling of apprehension coming from the people, a few staring straight at his hands, as if hypnotised by the power it extruded. "Kid… I got a bad feelin' about this." Aster shifting so that he was standing directly in front of DG, his body a solid wall of flesh between the people and the kid that had paid him.

"When is anything ever easy?" She muttered softly to herself, staring at the back of the man that was willing to protect her like that, the thought of that sent a jolt of longing through her heart… wishing it was Cain here with her… But there would be no such luck.

"Hand it over." The scruffy old man growled out, approaching them as several guns clicked slightly, several of his companions raising their weapons in threat. None of the cold hard faces streaked with ashes and dirt were willing to give up at any cost, their guns rising upwards threateningly.

"I have decided it's not for sale." Unflinching in the face of such danger, the small object was being wrapped up in one large hand though his fingers were tingling sharply at the feeling of the magic floating around the small trinket. Suddenly Aster thrust the thing behind him and right into DG's hands, before he was reaching down for his shotgun, his expression darkening slightly. Right now he didn't care for his reputation, nor offending these people… once he had clearly witnessed what the little thing did, he was aware of just how foolish he was in thinking of selling it.

A gun suddenly levelled only inches from Aster's head as a man stepped out from the right as if he had suddenly stepped clearly out of thin air, the Farmer not even flinching at the click of the safety being taken off. "Hand it over. I will not ask again. This or your life." The entire situation rapidly going madly out of control…

Suddenly, DG kicked out at the gear break of the heavy truck, the engine suddenly rumbling to life with a start as her hand found the key, before anyone had the chance to react, her hands gripped the back of Aster's shirt, forcefully yanking backwards with all her weight, dragging him back into the cab. The gun went off, the bullet ricochet off the edge of the door just above his head, his hand snatched up the heavy iron box and with a roar of effort flung the thing at the man's head, the crushing weight of it slammed against the man's face and sent him crashing backwards to the ground. His gun going off and the bullets zinged against the metal door as he collapsed. The giant sprawled on top of her as a hand reached down and jammed against the accelerator, the truck jumping forwards, bunny hopping harshly with a squeal of breaks and chugged up smoke.

From where he was his hands came up with the shotgun, the heavy weight of his back almost crushing her as he let off several large rounds out into the bunch of people, two caught one of the ambushers and he went down in a rush of crimson.

The truck crashed down through the trees, an arm suddenly wrapping tightly around her middle just as his weight lifted off her. Bullets zinging against the metal sides of the truck as it was quicken away from the scene, the wheels churning up dust and debris throwing it backwards as if increased speed down the steep slope that peeled downwards from the side of the road. The shovel that had rested between the seats was suddenly jammed against the accelerator, making the truck protest sharply at such rough treatment. Aster suddenly dragging her along with him as they crashed out the over door and were sent tumbling out into the dirt and dust… rolling madly down the hill just as the scattered men were taking after them.

The two of them thumped to an abrasive halt against the base of a rotting tree, the wood creaking as Aster groaned, his back having taken the force of the impact. Yet, instantly she was being tugged sharply upwards, both of them struggling to their feet against the dizziness from the long roll, taking off towards the trees of the Papay orchard. Her feet slipped on the uneven ground, making her lag several steps behind the stronger and faster Aster, when abruptly she found herself being lifted like a sack of potatoes, thrust over one broad shoulder, her cheek scrapping against the edge of the shotgun barrel as Aster was putting distance between them and their new pursuers.

"Whose brilliant idea was this?" She bit out, her hands clinging to her backpack and Cain's gun, unwilling to loose either, the small statuette having been shoved into the bag earlier. The wind knocked from her lungs as he leapt the gap over the small stream, the gun slamming against the back of the man, gaining a short yelp of pain as it struck the large bruised area that had formed from the heavy impact. The increasing rain was making it difficult to move, the ground becoming increasingly muddy, as the storm didn't let up.

"Hey! Keep your mouth shut." He snorted back, though he knew one time or other… someone had been bound to doublecross him, or he found something… that even he didn't want to trade once he realised just how much trouble it could cause.

A bullet punched into the bark of the tree beside her head, her eyes lifting to see the people making their way down the swath of a trail the truck had made through the trees. Several more bullets slammed into the trees around them, Aster dodging through them and making his way across the slope towards the fields of the Papay. Her eyes lingering on the vehicle just as she watched it smash into a tree stump, the entire thing fling a wave of the manure and scraps high into the air to rain down across the landscape in a smelly concoction, before the back end of the flat bed dropped down to the ground. The engine dying in a burst of crazy glory of smoke and a lick of small red flames, which leaking upwards from the bonnet.

"You need a new truck too…"

Soon they were plunging into the trees of the orchard, several of their pursuers hesitating on the edge of that territory, knowing the dangers that lurked within the bare trees… but knowing if they wanted to gain the strange prize they were going to have to follow them in.

But the more agile ambushers were already on the tree line just at the edge of the orchard, two of the men pausing to get a good aim at them, when she raised the gun she gripped in her hands, pointing it at them and squeezed the trigger twice. One caught a man in the leg, another dropping his gun with a yell of pain as the bullet slammed into his gun hand, yet DG didn't see it as her eyes had squeezed closed with the recoil of the gun.

The remaining two were slowly being outdistanced, Aster's large body holding a lot of stored energy, the straight rows and more even ground allowed him to pick up pace, never slowly even though his muscles were aching, knowing that if he did it would not spell something good for them, because a new threat was lurking somewhere between the trees… the Papay.

* * *

Dampre Trail, Near The Fields Of The Papay

The black horse stood out against the green of the forest, then tall slender woman looking strangely at home upon its back, though her head was hunched slightly over a mirror, her fingers lightly brushing against the edge of it, rain drops splashing against the glass before she used the edge of her sleeve to wipe them away. A soft golden shimmer around the edge of the mirror showed that it was being used for something other to seeing herself… Azkadellia let out a soft sigh, eyes closing for a long moment, letting out a slightly shaky breath, before she was finally able to feel a very slight ripple in her sister's magic.

The mirror surface rippled sharply, the image blurring slightly before solidifying for one brief moment where she could sight of DG slung like luggage over a heavy shoulder, a large man carrying her through… what she could definitely think to be the Papay Fields. Fingers gripping the edges of it, a spark of anger flared through her features, her sister was in trouble… deep trouble… someone had kidnapped her.

Glitch had been riding beside her, his expression troubled by the flash of the image, head tipping towards the Princess's face. "The fields of the Papay…" He realised just how awkward and downright dangerous it would be to venture through such grounds with Azkadellia with them… the Papay would not take kindly to her presence even though it had to been her fault the famine had destroyed their trees and now forced them to hunt innocent people for food.

"We are going." Her words rang with a surprising authority, straightening her slightly hunched shoulders; she forced herself to put on a braver face as possible, her eyes showing the flicker of guilt that lurked so very close to the surface.

A warm hand rested against her wrist, making her turn slightly to regard Glitch, the man that could sometimes could be rather clumsy and easily distracted seemed to have pulled himself strangely together, his expression serious and marked with worry. "We should go around it…" Though he was deeply concerned for DG he was equally worried for her sister… not wanting to risk her safety, knowing DG would never for give him… and he would never forgive himself for any harm that came to her while she was under his protection.

"No." The stubbornness that had always been almost distinctively a Princess Dorothy Gale trait reared its head within Azkadellia, the woman's hand lightly touching Glitch's fingers lightly, appreciating his concern. "We will go through it. I will not run from something I am guilty for." Hazel eyes making even the soldiers that had flashed the woman questioning and sceptical looks were met by a fierce determination. "My sister helped me when I was in trouble. I will not back down when she is still so close. We have to find her."

Jeb had dropped back from the front of the party, his dark brown stallion pulling along the other side of the Princess, his hazel-blue eyes flickering towards her as long blonde curls clung to his skull from the light smattering of rain that had fallen over them. "Why would… the princess go after my father?" He paused, his brows knotting together ever so slightly, yet his back remained straight and his body tense preparing for an answer the faint flicker of hope did not want to hear. "When I was clearly told he was dead." Hadn't he been told that before? And yet his father had come back…

"DG… was convinced that Cain is alive." Glitch provided, a hand lightly pressing against the heavy bruise he had received to the side of the head, giving a faint smile his heart understanding the reason why DG had struck him with her magic. He should have offered to go with her… instead of stopping her; hopefully it wouldn't be too late to make up for that mistake. "Very convinced."

"Then he is." Jeb might not have trusted very many… but the way his father had spoken about DG after they had last met a few weeks before, he was quite certain if anyone knew it would be her. He would find his father, though his duty remained to protect Azkadellia… He still could not help the overwhelming desire to find his father once more.

Suddenly a shout came from the head of the party, an arm waving for them to hurry as they came upon the body of a dead man, the body sprawled in the mud bearing two large wounds from a shotgun. Around the body were impressions of boots, barely a few hours old, heading off along a muddy path carved down the side of the slope. The undergrowth broken and crushed by the passage of the burnt out wreck of a truck sitting down at the bottom of the gully, the score marks of bullets in several of the trees showed the continuation of whatever battle that had claimed the life of the man at the feet of the soldiers.

"Search the body, then bury it." Jeb instructed two of the men that had accompanied them, gesturing towards the body with a hand, knowing it was better to gather what they could from the dead man but give him the dignity of not being food for any hungry critters.

Quickly the damp stiff body was being searched and a piece of soggy paper was being pulled from one pocket, before being offered up to Jeb, before a shovel was taken from the wagon and the shallow grave was dug for the body beside the track, giving him some dignity in death… But it was clear as they followed the broken trail cut through the undergrowth by the passage of several people that it was definitely linked to DG and her Kidnapper… as it headed straight into Papay territory.

"Find them!" A hand gesturing for the trackers to come to the fore and do their job, hoping that maybe it would bring them a little more luck in their quest.

The paper was offered to Azkadellia, the woman carefully sliding her fingernails along between the stuck folds of the page, opening it out to reveal a few visible words that hadn't been completely smudged by the water and partially faded. _Miosa… meeting… retrieve…_ the short message barely comprehensible even a touch of magic to help dry out the paper didn't reveal more than those three words. Her head tipped to the side, trying to think quickly on the foreign words, Miosa.

"It's a place in the north, beyond the lands of the Eastern Guild." Glitch answered as if reading her thoughts, his lips suddenly twitching in a smile as something reconnected in her head, before a sharp frown came to his lips. "I think." He added as almost an afterthought, clearly confusing himself even further…

"I think your right, Ambrose." She gave him a warm smile, resting a hand against his, carefully tucking the piece of paper into the man's pocket so that it would not get lost in the process of travel. "Thankyou." The simple act stopped him from continuing on with whatever train of thought was running through his partially empty mind. "Well at least now… I'm quite sure we have a destination."

* * *

OOC: Sorry for the long delay! Holidays XD. Hope you like this newest chapter that answers a few of your questions... but also gives you a few more to think about. Please review!


	6. Chapter 6: Family Lines

Warning: I don't own anything but Ozma, John Cain and Aster.

* * *

**Chapter 6: Family Lines**

Castle Ruins, Miosa

The distant sound of footsteps slowly reverberated down the corridor, the lights flickering in the hallway as energy was dragged from them by several machines that clanked away at the opposite end of the cellblock from the laboratory. The shadow of two guards came into view from where he was sitting up on the cot, his back stiffening when the two men stood in front of the woman's cell, their backs to him.

"Time to go, Lady." Keys rattled as the lock was turned and the door creaked sharply open, one of the men stepping forwards into the shadows, when suddenly the man was knocked back out the door by a bowl thrown hard at his head from within the shadows at the back of the cell. A grunt of pain escaped the man, hissing in anger at the still fiery nature of the red-headed girl, even though most of her memories and with it her personality had been stolen.

"Stupid little…" Another dish smashed against the bars just at one side of the door, a mere breath away from the man's bruising cheek.

"Get out!" Her voice was terrified, but still quite determined to make sure she was not taken again, backed into a corner the woman was clutching the last remaining bowl that she still had left over from her meals that had been brought once a day, explaining why the woman was so thin. "Leave me be. Is it not enough that you have taken everything already from me?"

"The boss wants what you have been holding out on." The second man was reading to step inside, when a hand grabbed the back of his shirt, Cain having moved as fast as his body would allow him. His arm reaching through the bars and restraining him, his other snapped up around the man's throat as he thumped against the bars, his elbow shifting to press against his windpipe cutting off the air to the brutish guard's lungs.

"Leave her alone." Snapped Cain, his grip tightening when the second guard had stepped a little closer to the woman, the ochre eyes of the woman staring at him in surprise from where she was huddled as far back into the corner of her cell as possible. "Leave her be or he dies." The hold he had on the guard, tightened sharply, the man's fingers clawing at his arm, but he kept the hold tight, refusing to let go, even though his body was protesting horribly the demands he was making on it.

The first guard gave Cain a look, "You think killing one man will stop anything?" The cold note in the voice made the Tin Man consider the situation, though he retained his grip upon the soldier, the only other object that was useful were the keys hanging from the door across from him… Well out of reach. "The boss wants her."

"Don't get involved." Came a soft request, the slender woman actually standing up, slipping forwards from the cot, though her legs were shivering slightly even under her own slight weight.

The man's grip on the guard slackened as he stepped backwards into his cell, surprised by the request that had made him instantly react to the authority within it. A voice that was strangely familiar now that he was thinking about it. Before the guard could turn around to take revenge on the strangling a hand suddenly touched against his arm, the red haired woman braving the fury, tugged once on the fabric. "Your boss wants to see me. I would think he meant now."

A hand suddenly came up and slapped her hard across the jaw, a red welt rising upwards across pale skin, she gritted her teeth against the pain and allowed herself to be dragged down the corridor as if she weighed little more a whisper of air and she probably didn't at that.

Cain's fists slammed against the metal bars, his head dropping down slightly. How could he have let that happen? But he had known there was almost nothing he could do, he had to escape from this place and part of him hoped that this was not going to be the last time he saw the woman…

But soon, the guard returned with several companions this time, the door opening to Cain's cell, he managed to send two flying with heavy punches before his wrists were caught and bound behind his back, his expression deepening with anger. "Where is she?" He snarled, body yanking against the restraints and the hands that grasped him tightly, before he was being dragged in the same direction as the young woman had. "What…"

The guard he had tried to strangle slugged him heavily across the jaw, silencing the man as he was been forced through the familiar doorway into the lab. The young woman was seated upright, bound in place to the chair as he was shoved down in front of her, in one opposite her, his hands strapped down tightly behind him. Struggling against the bonds, the chair squeaked in protest, seeing the state of the woman that had offered him kindness and her only food and water when she herself was quite desperate for them.

The familiar shuffling footsteps of the Alchemist made him sit bolt upright, head whipping around as he was drawing all of his energy to him, quite keen to get some answers to why this was all happening. A gnarled hand gripped the crimson locks and pulled the girl's head back upwards, dazed eyes revealing that the woman had been drugged in preparation this time for whatever experiment would happen. "Beautiful, isn't she?" A clawed finger brushed against the red bruise lingering across one pale cheek, before letting her head drop back down again for a moment. "It has taken so many treatments to get back this far. Yet, still she resists me."

Her amber eyes slowly rose, the cloudy colour clearing for a moment she gave Cain a look, hoping to tell him to resist this… to continue to struggle against the power of both the emerald shard and anything else that may happen to them.

"You would be surprised to know you two have actually met before. Though I would say she has forgotten by now. But you still remember, Mr Cain, of that I am certain." A hand reached towards a bench, a small syringe being picked up and brought towards his own neck, but he jerked hard unwilling to allow himself to be drugged, knocking the hand away and it smashed on the floor spilling the greenish liquid across the cold stone.

"Wyatt Cain." The woman's voice was soft, her brows coming together for a moment, as if trying to catch some thoughts that were flowing passed her mind. "You served on my… father's protection detail…"

It hit him like a ton of bricks, this frail creature was the same woman as Ozma Diggs, the only child of the Mystic Man, though that was very uncommon knowledge… A woman named for the historical princess. Yet, the woman he remembered was an old greying woman, with a warm smile and many laughter lines, one that reminded him of a sweet old lady, yet with a sharp wit and strange sparky personality hidden under that age worn demeanour. From what he remembered, the Witch had killed the woman…

"Ah yes, so now you remember her." A hand lightly touched the red hair, the girl attempting to escape the grasping fingers that got a sharp yelp when her head was yanked backwards. "Not worth the trouble I went to acquire her."

She winced sharply at the tightening grip on her hair, head arching backwards against the back of the metal chair, eyes closing for a long moment as she sucked in a deep breath, before trying to tear her hair free from his grasp with little success. "You were a henchman." Ozma mocked him shortly, her head twisting and her expression showing her distain for the man, doing whatever she could to push against the drugs slowly invading her system. "Nothing more… a mere pawn."

"Shut up." He hissed, suddenly having his feathers ruffled sharply by the girl's words, his grip tightening abruptly shoving her away hard from him. "You know nothing of me."

"I remember you though." Though most of what she had was fragmented over time, twisted and jumbled together she still knew well how to make this particular man angry, a way of distracting him from what he was doing, giving her a little more time to prepare. "I remember how it was you that removed that man's brain, doing her dirty work. All the meaningless spells you had to cast for her…" A snicker came from her lips, twisting sharply in her bonds, her slender wrists slipping partially through the leather and metal bands.

"But you forget. You ended up as mere payment."

"Yes, but that just means I have value." Ozma snapped back with a look of satisfaction, just as her hands slipped free from the bindings, struggling to her feet, her hands were reaching out towards the man's throat, quite unopposed to exacting some revenge in her own way against the man that had held her for years… the torture and memories ingrained upon her soul.

But, a jolt from one of the stunning rods that had been used on the likes of Kalm and Lylo was thrust against her ribs, downing her before she could do anything else. One of the assistants that had been hovering in the background earlier had arrived just at the right time. Sparks of blue lightning flared across her skin, a shriek of pain being dragged from her lips, Cain instantly pushing harder against his own restraints, the sound of her cries reminding him sharply of those of Adora.

"NO!" The bolts pinning the chair to the floor twisted sharply, bending them at an old angle as he thrust himself upwards against it as hard as he could. He could not sit and watch the woman die… he had been sent to find these people and save them from this murderer.

Soon she was curled up and not making a move to attempt another defiant action against the Alchemist, her body was hauled upwards and back into the chair, her arms bound tightly to the armrests with ropes as her eyes flickered open slightly, focusing on the man before her. Her expression drifted from confusion to a strange kind of joy at seeing Cain… or something similar. _"John…?" _Brows knitted together, trying to shake off the now full effects of the drug that was being used on her. _"But aren't you with my Father? I didn't think you would be back for another month." _

"Results." Despite the hand he was brushing against his slightly bruised throat, the effort was worth it, because of Wyatt Cain's face, it stirred something up in her, something from her past that matched with her physical age. The clarity of memories being produced by the de-aging process was startling.

"_Are you staying this time? Are both of you staying?"_ Her face lifted up almost hopefully as the soft glow of the crystal presented itself from where it was being held close to her head, the fine strand being pulled from her temple. _"Please, John…"_

"Quiet." Wyatt offered the word up softly, hoping that even though it was clear she didn't know who he was any longer, that his voice would do something to silence her… to change the direction of her thoughts. Though he wished only to hear a little more about his father, the odd curiosity from that one part of him reaching out towards that precious memory she was reliving.

"_Please… Are you staying?"_ Amber eyes flickered around the room, searching for a familiar face, for the face of the Mystic Man, for the man that had been her father. _"John? John? Answer me…"_ Amongst a crowd of people only she could see, her body straining against the ropes, trying to go after someone. _"John Cain, stop this instant."_ Her voice sounding sharply in the darkness, the same commanding tone coming from her lips.

And Wyatt suddenly realised who it was that she saw… His father, a man who had served in the position of protecting the Mystic Man when he had been little before he had died in the line of duty… A man that had never really been in his life, whom vanished for long months on end, only to return for a few days and vanish once more… Leaving him and his mother behind. _"This is not the place to talk about it, Ozma."_

"_And you dare to tell me this is not the place?"_ Her body was trembling with the force of the memories being pulled quickly from her, unravelling one of the small parts that remained to her. _"You… you and my father decided that it was more important then your son or me." _There was a flicker of tears slowly training down her pale cheeks, the pain of the memory being as if it were completely and utterly fresh.

Before one of Cain's hand was being shifted to press against the back of Ozma's, the sudden tug of memories being dragged from him by the strange gravity of the emerald, his own thread beginning to uncoil around her wrist, the two threads intertwining as they were forcefully unravelled. His a little faster to compensate for the lack of thread that remained for Ozma.

Suddenly he was being dragged along too into the memory that was playing out for her…

_The ballroom buzzed with people, elegant gowns and sweeping grandeur that marked the city hall of Central City, a place alive and practically buzzing with so many different people that one person could be lost in the swirling sea of living and moving colour. But this was a time forty years before, a place of hope and dreams long before the Witch had been released, where anything was quite possible._

The swirl of lights and dance of colours tinged his vision, the slight blur of everything swirling around him made him dizzy. Before he was turning towards the woman, the same girl he faced within the man's laboratory, yet this one was healthier, not carrying the weight of terrors upon her soul. Yet, it was the man she was facing that sent a sharp jolt through his body, turning him inside out, a man with blonde slightly wavy locks towered a little over the red haired girl, his arm pulling itself free from her grasp.

"_You have no understanding of the situation, Ozma." A large hand reached out towards to ruffle the girl's bright locks, but was forcefully slapped away. There was a shimmer of soft tears in her eyes, glaring at him, though he didn't quite know what to make of that. "We are doing things that are far more important than… you know." _

_A hand caught the man hard across the cheek, sending him back a step with the force of it, several people around them turning to watch what was happening. Several dancers halted mid spin to see the blonde haired man reach out and grip the slender wrist of the woman and draw her along with him, a dark red mark slowly rising across his tanned skin. People skittered out of their way, allowing them to pass without question, though some wondered what to make of it all. _

_Struggling in the grip of the gunslinger, they were finally out on one of the balconies when she finally managed to wrench her arm free from his grip. Amber eyes glaring at him with a disappointment and anger that had a deep wave of force behind it and one that was not just hers. "You think I don't understand what your doing?" _

Wyatt had hurried along behind, being drawn forcefully along by the pull of the memory, yet he had been invisible to all those around him, their faces a blur to him, yet a few he was able to place and recognise from records and a few images he had seen from time to time. Yet, he watched the pair, uncertain what exactly was going on. But this was the first time he had ever seen his father for so long, the brief faint memories of his own being nothing compared to this clear picture as if he could almost reach out to touch him.

"_Your Son. Everything you leave behind, suffers. He doesn't even know your face." The terrible ache that rippled through her chest made her hold back a sound that would have broken a man's heart if it had been heard. "And every time you come back… Each time you both return from that place, he's changes and so do you. Now I barely recognise my father, instead all that is there is the 'Mystic Man'." And this time she had John's full attention, her usual patience with the matter coming to a very abrupt end. "And it's because of you."_

"_I didn't do anything." John replied, blue eyes cool and calm within a face that reminded Wyatt so much of his son's now that he could see his father clearly at age thirty. The blonde locks and stormy eyes holding a will that would have been no match for anyone, but it was no match for the anger of this one girl, one that was making the hard expression crack with the first touches of anguish at her anger he knew was well founded. "I didn't do anything Ozma."_

"_No, you didn't. You didn't stop him from letting that thing change him. I know about it, I know all about it. I've even seen the Emerald statues." Her eyes narrowed, a flare of pain dancing through them as she looked at him. "My father is an intelligent man. But now… now all he is, is…" She couldn't quite find the word, her fingers curling into tight fists at her sides. "He isn't my father any more. He's someone else, that no longer cares for me." Could she truly blame this man for what had happened to her father? For some part he was responsible… she knew that much. "And you're not Jeb any more either. You don't care about little Wyatt or me." _

_There was a brief moment of clear emotions in those stormy eyes, the strange feelings revealing themselves there for only a moment before his expression turned darker. "I am. I am him, Ozma." A hand reached out towards the woman, lightly touching her red hair, carefully curling into the locks of bright crimson. "I might be a little different, but that does not change the way I feel about you. And it does not mean I ever stopped caring about my son."_

"_Yes, it does." The words were out of her mouth before she could stop them, the woman stepping backwards quickly from his touch. "Why do you have to keep going to the…" _

Suddenly they were being torn back from the memory, the force threw him physically hard backwards against the chair, his head spinning, but the image of his father so clear now in his mind for the first time in his life. He had indeed saw his father… Alive.

Ozma gritted her teeth against the pain of the drain on her, having gripped the memory so hard that the thread threatened to snap under the force she applied to the task. The girl wasn't about to all the allow any more of those memory surface, because she knew there were things in that one conversation that could give the Alchemist exactly what he wanted to know. "You will get no more from me."

* * *

Cain's Abandoned House, Fields Of The Papay

Breaking through another rank of trees, her head whipped around to glance behind her, catching sight of the creatures pursuing them through the newly grown orchard trees that swayed dangerously around them in the wind whipped up by the storm bank that had continued to build even further since the early morning meeting. Her entire body trembled with exhaustion, DG straining to keep up with Aster as his hand pulled her along, forcing her to keep moving even though she could barely move now, as the strength had left her.

Stumbling, she twisted her head around to stare at the pack of Papay that were right on their heels, the large animals moving a little closer with each breath, before they suddenly broke through the tree line, and came out of the twisted lines of the orchard trees and into a rather familiar clearing. The half rotten house and the small lake off to one side, the edges of the forest curving around the other side of the property… It was Cain's house…

Yet, the Fields of the Papay had been much further the last time she had been here, her mind barely touching that before she was being pulled faster towards the ruins of the house, she was bodily flung through the entrance and the slightly rotten door slammed behind them sharply. Aster doing his best to prop something up against it as it rattled on the rusted hinges, the entire side of the cottage heaving under the impact of the creatures slamming against it bodily.

The rotten odour of their bodies filling the small space quickly, the snuffling howls of the creatures deafening her for a long moment, before she suddenly felt a sharp jolt of something rattle through her. Every sense within her suddenly attuned to someone brushing up against her magical senses, something warm and comfortingly familiar that made her heart leap for one moment. Could it be Azkadellia? Every part of her confirmed the distant presence as her sister, one she hadn't been allowed to see for months, no matter what she did… her sister remained firmly out of reach and she had been almost literally confined within the Palace walls.

There was a rush of feeling rising up within her belly, when her eyes lifted to gaze upwards into a cracked and broken mirror that rested on mantel and suddenly came face to face with a shimmering reflection of her sister. The faint image dancing back and forth out of focus, the dark brown eyes of the elder princess sent a short jolt through DG. "Az?"

Her hand reaching up to grasp the edge of the mirror, bringing it down so that she could gaze into it, wincing sharply as the sharp edge of the cracked glass sliced a little into her palm, but the image became sharply clearer the moment she touched it. The woman on the other side met her gaze as if they were looking through a window at each other.

"_DG?"_ Came the soft reply, the mirror shifting upwards to get a better view of the girl. _"DG, where are you?" _Genuine worry filled the voice that issued softly from the glass, forcing the woman to strain to hear the sound over the howling wails of the Papay outside and the shudder of the house on its very foundations.

Aster was staring at her from across the room, his body pressing against the door hoping to steady it a lot more then the rusted hinges would allow. "Galen?" He hissed, dark green eyes wide and staring at her from where he stood.

"_DG? Please DG, where are you?"_

Her vivid blue eyes flickered from the man across from her to the mirror in her hands, when the house lurched sharply, wood splintering heavily around them, a box that had been sitting beside the mirror on the mantle crashed down into her chest, the latch of it snapping under the impact that bowled her over. A silver ring and several other items tumbled out, her hand instantly catching around the ring, fingers wrapping around it tightly before it could scatter with the other items. For a long moment, she stood stock still staring down at the wedding ring that sat heavily between her fingers, the silver glinting in the faint light coming through the window and mirror.

"GALEN! I need your help!" Aster growled out, ignoring the mirror and the voice that issued from it, and abruptly DG dropped it, her magic slowly beginning to stir, a spell being whispered from her lips as she tried to support the groaning creaking wood that was collapsing inwards with each impact.

The mirror shattered, the image of Az becoming fragmented as her sister pleaded with her to tell her where she was, but DG could no longer answer as the brilliant light of her magic was blazing forth to almost blind everyone as the her sister watched on, crying out her name as the entire house was torn apart in a shower of wood and splinters and one last cry from DG before the image Az saw on the other end went dead… leaving only a pitch black view in the mirror.

* * *

Fields Of The Papay

"DG? DG!" Azkadellia was trembling hard as she was gazing into the darkened mirror, the image rippling slowly before it reverted to show nothing more then her own reflection. This was not good… not good at all, the sounds of the Papay, he hissing growls and shouts of the man still lingered for a few moments before they too were being silenced. Glitch gazed down into the mirror, a warm hand resting against one of her trembling arms, the woman's dark eyes were turning towards him and a soft sob escaped her.

"I think I remember where that is." His voice was soft, knowing that anything louder would make the reality of the situation seem even more worse then what they knew… to make the entire thing real to both of them. "I know where they are. Its not far from here." He assured her, before his orders were being given out to the guards and Knights that surrounded them, and the horses were being urged faster…

When suddenly Azkadellia's horse was flying through the soldiers, scattering them for a few moments as she took off down the trail, Glitch right behind her, calling out her name and knowing that she was not about to stop. With DG so close… what reason was there to stop or even go slow? She was within reach… And Az just hoped she would get there in time…

* * *

OOC: I apologise for the very long delay of this post, I've suffered from writers block over this story. Though I think I've made it worse XD with my Cliffy. But I hope those of you that do enjoy this story will bear with me a little longer. I assure you it won't be abandoned, I currently don't have the time to write it until I'm finished university at the end of october So please bear with me. I would love if you can review and give me an idea what you think!


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